Maybe A Little Dysfunctional
by Cometas Por El Cielo
Summary: *Title most likely will change* Sequel to Rossi's Girls: Dave has had his twin daughters for seven months now and as the calendar year comes to a close, more serious issues come up in their lives.
1. Oh No

Disclaimer: Despite my efforts, I was unable to steal Criminal Minds from CBS and the writers. So the only characters I own are the characters NOT in the show.

The title of the fic will most likely change. 'Dysfunctional' was the first word that came to mind so I was like, okay, okay. Working title. I'm not good at coming up with title ideas, ha XD

So, I wrote the last story in past tense first person alternating POVs...I kind of prefer writing in third person. It would be weird if I just totally switched over, so I'm going to sort of still write some in past tense first person alternating but I will write mostly in past tense third person. Gradually step away from first person, yenno?...

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><p><strong>Oh No...<strong>

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><p><em>Third Person POV...<em>

December 2nd rolled around and the weather was starting to get too cold for anybody's comfort. SSA David Rossi sat at his desk in his office at the FBI Academy in Quantico going through the paperwork Strauss had given him. As much as it irritated him he could never stop himself from smiling when he looked up. Dave was never one to show too much of his personal life through objects in his office and he had only one framed photograph on his desk, facing towards him, not the door. The photograph was a close-up of two teenage girls with dark hair and eyes, fifteen or sixteen by the looks of them giving each other a hug. On the left was a girl wearing a cheerleading uniform and her hair tied up in one of those ponytail holders they give them with a red line painted on one cheek and a black line painted on the other. On the right, was a girl who was obviously not a cheerleader; her straight black hair had the ends of one section of her hair turquoise blue, and it was down. Her face lacked any paint in support of their high school team.

The two girls in the picture were in fact fifteen years old and they were his twin daughters Haylee and Harper Rossi. Harper, the twin born thirteen and a half minutes after her sister, was the cheerleader on the left. Haylee, the older twin, was the girl with the funny hair on the right. Haylee was on the soccer team, but the soccer season had not started yet that year.

Dave had only had custody of the twins since May 2nd which was exactly seven months ago. Their mother, his third ex-wife, decided she didn't really want them anymore. Up until then, he had never known about his daughters. Luckily, he was adjusting well to his new role as father and the girls seemed to like living with him in Virginia. He was grateful for that, considering they lived on the other side of the country in Ten Sleep, Wyoming before relocating.

Currently, both girls were sophomores at Brooke Point High School in Stafford, Virginia. Haylee was an unofficial genius- there was no IQ test to prove it, but just looking at her grades and her AP placement could support an argument for it. Harper was also an intelligent girl, but she wasn't in all AP classes like her sister. Harper was also the more rebellious of Dave's two daughters. That fact was proven the Sunday after Thanksgiving.

Harper had snuk away to an unsupervised teen party shortly after Dave got home from work. She had called him while she was completely wasted and he picked her up before any local police got involved. When Dace came to get her he was almost positive that she was also high but he didn't interrogate her until they got home. She tried to convince him to let her stay home from school Monday because of her hangover, but he put his foot down and made her go anyway. Rightfully so, he grounded her until Christmas break started. Dave didn't plan on sticking to it for that long- maybe he's let her off a week before break. But the holiday break didn't start until the twenty-first, so Harper still had a long way to go.

David was distracted out of his focus on the paperwork when he heard a soft knock on the door. "Come in." He said distantly.

"That's it, Daddy? No, 'how was your day?'" One of his daughters asked as she walked in.

Dave reached under his desk and grabbed a can of Pepsi like he did every time Haylee showed up after school. "Well then, 'how was your day?'"

"It was awesome. I had lunch with Vitya, Bianca and Lindzi today. There's a new student from Scotland- Kara Cruikshank- so Ellie wanted to talk to another person from the UK." She paused then changed from calm to extremely hyper. "Ohmigosh guess what?"

"Hm?"

"Like, the funniest thing happened at lunch today. Okay, so like, Vitya and I were sitting across from each other and we were like, play-arguing over who has the weirdest-looking face. He was making a dig about hose nose so he pointed at it- and this _random apple _flies across the cafeteria and pegs him _right_ in the nose! Both of us were laughing so hard for like, ten minutes!"

Dave laughed, despite the fact that he didn't like Vitya very much. Vitya Lazarev was an exchange student from Yekaterinburg, Russia. He was the same age as Haylee and on his first day attending school in America he had befriended her. Since then, they had been tutoring each other in their languages. Vitya's English was becoming rather fluent and he had even learned to make his accent less prominent, whereas Haylee was starting to speak Russian well enough to get around. By the time Vitya returns to Russia, Dave was sure his oldest daughter would speak the language much better. Because if the lessons, Haylee was decent in German (her second language when she lived in Wyoming), Spanish (her language in Virginia), Russian and was excellent in sign language.

Again, despite the fact that Dave didn't like the boy teaching her, he was proud of her. It wans't the fact he was _Russian _that bothered him- no, he thought Russia was cool. It was just; any man with a foreign accent cannot be trusted around his daughter!

Haylee finished her Pepsi halfway before telling her father the real reason she showed up after school. She usually doesn't come to the BAU on school days. "So, Lindzi's birthday is on Christmas Eve and Amy and Jaden are going to take Lindzi and some of her friends out to dinner tonight for an early birthday thing. Can I go?"

Dave agreed immediately. He trusted Amy Sweetwater, no exceptions. "Of course."

Haylee took another sip of Pepsi before offering the rest of it to Dave. "I promise I don't carry diseases."

He took the Pepsi. "Have fun, kiddo."

"Thanks Dad." She said before leaving the office. She said 'hey,' to the other BAU agents before going down the elevator.

* * *

><p><em>Purgatory.<em>

That's what grounding felt like to Harper Rossi. No laptop, no going out with friends, no extracurricular activities besides cheerleading and absolutely no cell phone use unless it is between 7:00 and 8:00 PM or it is a call to one of the numbers on the 'trusted' list. So basically, her father, his team, Amy Sweetwater across the street and Ife White, Harper''s best friend Masara's mother.

"That's the last time I go partying." Harper said to herself. "And get caught." She added in a mumble. She laid on her bed, hair dangling off the edge tossing a tin foil ball into the air and catching it repeatedly. It wasn't like there was anything else to do. Except maybe cook dinner. She ordered Chinese and I should be here any-

_Ding dong!_

"Hallelujah! A human!" She exclaimed, throwing her hands into the air and leaping off her bed. She nearly tripped down the stairs.

"Harper Rossi?" The delivery guy asked.

"That's me." She said sweetly. She recognized the guy as Justin Feng, a classmate of hers. "Justin!"

"Oh! Hey Harper." He said, handing her her order.

"Hm, I guess I have to give you and extra large tip." She said, taking a few steps back to the kitchen counter. She opened up a jar with moeny in it specifically for tipping purposes and grabbed a ten dollar bill.

"You don't have to-" Justin started.

"No, it's okay. We're friends- sort of. And also...it's my Daddy's money." Which just made Justin laugh.

"Still grounded?"

"Still grounded...see ya."

"See ya."

That was about all of the human interaction Harper got outside of school.

* * *

><p>A man put out his cigarette and looked up at the man sitting in the driver's seat. "Bro are you sure you want to do this?"<p>

"Shut the hell up! I'm sure, of course I'm sure, I'm always sure!" he lit another cigarette.

"Okay, bro! Bro chill."

"Why ask?"

The younger stumbled to find the right words. "Well, I uh...well because. We've been killing girls and junk since we was teenagers. Don' cha think it's time to stop?"

"Hand me the pictures of the girls."

"But-"

"Now!"

"Sure thing." He handed him the photographs of two brunette girls, two sisters. The pictures were taken while stalking each girl separately around the mall.

The man grinned. "These targets are perfect..."

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><p>I had the eventual abduction planned from the start of the fic : Can't wait to actually write it.


	2. Targeted

Disclaimer: Despite my efforts, I was unable to steal Criminal Minds from CBS and the writers. So the only characters I own are the characters NOT in the show.

Next one will be much more emo-Dave :/

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><p><strong>Targeted<strong>

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><p><em>Harper's POV...<em>

I sat on the couch the next night eating leftover Chinese food with Haylee and we watched the news until Dad got home. We were paying little attention to the finance news and we just read the headlines across the bottom:

_Sixteen year old Martina Gellar and her sister fourteen year old Lucia are still missing from Garrisonville, Virginia._

"Hm, Garmisnbill. Dahs nut fir fra meer." Haylee said with her mouth full of rice.

"Swallow, then say that again." I told her.

Haylee swallowed then repeated. "Garrisonville. That's not far from here, it is about ten minutes driving- Bianca lives in Garrisonville."

"Oh." I said slowly. We continued to look at that the headlines as they scrolled by.

_The bodies of seventeen year olds Ashlynn Marin and Hannah Hall were found in the Rappahannock River three days after the Gellar sisters' disappearance. Police believe the crimes may be connected._

_Click, whoosh! _The front door opened. "Ah!" Haylee and I screamed and grabbed each other.

"Hey! It's just me!" Daddy said from the door, throwing his jacket in the coat closet.

"Right, sorry."

**~.*~.*~.*~.***

_The next day..._

_8:00 AM_

_Third Person POV..._

_Ah, Saturday_. Harper thought as she fell backwards onto her bed. Despite the mega-long grounding her father had given her she still enjoyed her Saturdays. Mostly because while Dave was at work her three best friends would be over at Masara's house and all Harper had to do was lean over the fence to talk with them.

Of course, to do that she had to wait for Agent Rossi to _actually_ leave for work.

_It's official. Being grounded sucks. _

"You shouldn't have gone out partying, Harp." Haylee smirked as she stood in her twin's doorway. She had her hair nice and straightened and she was dressed like she was going out.

"Getting all dressed up for your _boyfriend_?" Harper teased.

"Vitya isn't my boyfriend. And no, I'm not hanging out with any boys today; it's just me and Bianca."

"Whatever. Have fun while I'm in purgatory."

"It isn't my fault that you went out and got drunk and high with your party friends."

"Just go before I kill you."

When Haylee left Harper put her earphones in and turned her iPod up full blast. She probably should have been doing her weekend homework, but that's what Sunday nights are for.

At seven o'clock she hooked her iPod up to her docking station and blared her music while she made dinner for herself. It took fifteen minutes to eat and by seven thirty she was almost done with clean-up.

Everybody Wants To Rule The World was playing so loudly that Harper was almost positive that the neighbors could hear it.

_There's a room where the light won't find you_

_Holding hands while the walls come tumbling down_

_When they do I'll be right behind you._

_So glad we've almost made it._

_So sad they had to fade it,_

_Everybody wants to rule the w-_

The music suddenly stopped. "Hey! Haylee you could have at least waited until that song was over." Harper said irritably as she placed the last dish in the dishwasher. She heard heavy footsteps come toward her, footsteps that didn't belong to her sister.

"This isn't funny." She said shakily, fumbling around the kitchen to find her cell phone. She finally found it beside the stove and immediately dialed 9-1-1 but didn't press the call button yet. The heavy footsteps had stopped and Harper kept 9-1-1 up but relaxed enough to walk from the kitchen.

"Haylee, if you're getting Vitya or any of your other friends to scare me, it's working."

The heard the back door open and another set of footsteps walk in. The second set was less confident, almost as if the person to whom they belonged was uncomfortable with being there. Harper decided this was enough and she pressed the call button. "9-1-1 what's your emergency?"

"I'm not sure if there is one, yet."

"Ma'am?"

"I hear weird footsteps, but I'm not sure yet if-"

_Whack!_ One of the two people hit her over the head with a baseball bat, knocking her off of her feet. Her phone fell out of her hand and she stretched to grab it.

"Ma'am are you still there?"

"Yes!" She screamed frantically, running to the downstairs guest bathroom and locking herself in.

"Stay calm-"

"He hit me in the head with a f*cking baseball bat and I locked myself in a bathroom and you are trying to clam me down!"

"What is your name?"

"Harper Rossi! Quick, just send somebody, I don't care just- aragh!" She screamed as they pounded on the door. The pounding stopped.

"Do oyu need police, ambulance or fire rescue?"

"Police, police, police." She might have said it quietly, but the fear was evident in her voice.

"Ma'am, are they armed?"

"Uh, a baseball bat is all I've seen- just hurry up and ask questions later!" She began to cry and this point.

"What's your address?"

"1273-" _Boom! Boom! Boom! _"Ahh!" She lowered the phone to her side and hid in the linen closet, which was barely big enough to fit her small form in. _Bang! _She heard a gunshot which made her scream louder. "I heard a gun go off." She whispered to the dispatcher.

"Okay ma'am, we've traced your call I'm sending police now."

"Thank you-"

The door of the linen closet swung open and Harper screamed. The older man grinned with delight. "You put up a good fight." He raised the bat above his head.

Harper kicked at the man with a baseball bat, noting that he appeared to be in his mid-thirties. She screamed as the younger man came towards her with a video camera. "She has a cell phone, man."

"Not for long." The older man said gruffly.

"Two men!" Harper screamed into the phone before he took it and tossed it away from her. "Mid-thirties, mid-twen-"

"Shut her up!" The younger pleaded with the elder. The man in his mid-thirties pulled a handkerchief out of his pocket and placed it firmly over Harper's mouth and nose. Harper kicked and swung her arms violently until the handkerchief did its job in cutting of her oxygen to the point of knocking her out. She was able to see the scared face of the younger man before it all went black.

"Let's go. Shut that damned camera off, we have enough!"

"Sure thing, whatever you want."

* * *

><p>Haylee pushed her hair out of her face as she dug through her purse to look for her phone. "Bianca, I told Daddy to call me eight so I can run any further plans by him. Can I just go to to car and wait, I left my phone there."<p>

"Sure. You know you don't have to ask, just take the keys." Bianca said, tossing her keys to her friend.

"Thanks Bia."

"No problem. Just make sure you put something good on the CD player, okay?"

"Sure."

Haylee turned around and took the escalators to leave the mall. She walked to the five-storey parking deck and to Bianca's car on the third. There was hardly any other cars parked there, as the mall was about to close for the day. She unlocked the car, started the engine, and turned the radio on. Before even taking the time to see what was on, she sorted through Bianca's CD's and squealed happily when she found Flyleaf's first album. She pushed it into the CD player and turned to her favorite song on the CD, So I Thought and she began to sing along.

_All your twisted thoughts free flow  
>To everlasting memories<br>Show soul  
>Kiss the stars with me<br>And dread the wait for  
>Stupid calls returning us to life<br>We say to those who are in love  
>It can't be true 'cause we're too young<br>I know that's true because  
>so long I was<br>So in love with you  
><em>_So __I thought_

_A year goes by  
><em>_And I can't talk about it_

She turned it up loud enough to be heard from the trunk, where she was walking to next to put her purse and two of the three jackets she was wearing that day. After struggling to keep a hold of her iPod, iPhone, jackets, purse and scarf all at once for about thirty seconds, her phone fell from her hand.

Haylee threw her things in the trunk and checked the clock on her phone; 8:03. "Funny. Daddy is usually annoyingly on time with his calls." _He's probably meeting with Strauss or Hotch or something. I'll wait._

She walked off to go sit in the car and continued singing along to Flyeleaf:

_On my knees  
>Dim lighted room<br>Thoughts free flow try to consume  
>Myself in this<br>I'm not faithless  
>Just paranoid of getting lost or that I might lose<br>Ignorance is bliss cherish it  
>Pretty neighborhoods<br>You learn too much to hold  
>Believe it not<br>And fight the tears  
>With pretty smiles and lies<br>About the times_

_A year goes by-_

"Flyleaf. Awesome choice." Said a gruff male voice from beside the door. She immediately began to get uncomfortable but politely thanked the man for complimenting her music choices. "You're welcome...tell me something. Do you believe in God?"

She reached behind her back and placed her finger on the '2' button, which is the speed dial she had set for 9-1-1. She looked away from the man, trying to think of some way to escape. Maybe she could swing her leg over and kick him in the groin. "Yes."

He smirked, "You'd best be praying now."

"Please, what do you want?" Her voice shook with fear. "Do you want my money? I only have about fifty but it counts, right? My iPod? It's the newest iPod touch 32 gig!" she took it out of the glove box and offered it to him.

The man smirked, "I don't _want _your money or your iPod."

"My necklace then? You can sell it, just please don't hurt me." She put her hand on the door to slam it shut. "Please," She begged once more.

"Now!" The man shouted to the driver's side door. Haylee had not even realized she left both car doors open, nor did she see the younger man with the video camera standing on the other side.

Haylee screamed as a third man moved the man with the camera out of the way. "Just come with us and nobody will get hurt." He told her.

"Creep!" She kicked the first man in the groin and leaped out of the car on that side. The man ran away into some unknown direction

"Ooh feisty." The third man growled hungrily.

Haylee ran from Bianca's car in the parking deck, leaving her iPod but making sure she brought her iPhone. All those years of playing soccer finally paid off in her escape attempt. She ran too fast for any of the three men to keep up with her until- _schreeeeech! _The wheels of a vehicle were spinning behind her. She swore loudly as she tried to speed up. She was looking behind her and didn't see the park car in front of her until she was inches from slamming into it. She was going to fast to stop, so she just turned herself at an angle and hit one of the side mirrors. Haylee took a look behind her and noticed that the man she kicked in the groin was the diver and the third man was in the passenger seat. _Where's camera guy?_

"L-looking for me?" He tried to sound as threatening as the other two men, but he failed miserably. He pulled a baseball bat from behind his back with his free hand. The vehicle blocking her escape on one end and the man with the bat on the other, Haylee was trapped. Before he could get a good focus on her, Haylee stuffed her iPhone into her sports bra in case she got a chance to call the police. The man set the camera down and with both hands, raised the bat over his head. Haylee could have sworn that he had mouthed, "I'm sorry," before hitting her over the head, but she couldn't be sure.

Blood poured from a gash that the bat had caused. He obviously wanted to knock her out and had not yet achieved that, so he hit her again. This time, it went black.

* * *

><p><em>Thirty minute skip<em>

David Rossi sat along in his office, as usual. He took a sip from one of Haylee's Pepsi cans- she wouldn't notice if _one _was missing. "What the hell Haylee, you are the one that told me to call."

That was the fifth time he'd tried calling his older daughter. He didn't need to keep tabs on the younger, seeing as she was grounded and was surely at home. He finished off the Pepsi and threw the can in the trash bin. There was a knock at his office door and he saw two police officers standing there.

The first thought he had was, "Look, if Harper was caught drinking at a party I had no knowledge of it."

The female officer's lips curved up in a half smile as the reminisced her teenage years. "Agent Rossi," The more serious male officer spoke up. "I wish it was just that."

_Oh hell no. Haylee did something illegal now, too? _"What is it, exactly?"

"Agent Rossi, the 9-1-1 call center in Stafford county received a call from your home at 7:31 PM. A teenage girl was on the other end. The call lasted a minute and seventeen seconds, during which your daughter described two men breaking in and one even attacked her. There were sounds of a struggle before the call ended."

"Officer-?"

"Henley."

"Officer Henley, which daughter are you talking about?"

"Harper Rossi."

Dave wasn't sure he was hearing correctly. "I'm sorry, so two men broke into the house and hurt my daughter? Where is she? Is she okay?"

The female lowered her head, then lifted it to speak. "Four officers were sent to check it out. By the time they got there, Harper and the two men were gone. We're sorry, but we think she may have been abducted."

"What?" He mouthed, not believing any of it.

"Agent Rossi, that's not all." Officer Henley said.

Dave shook his head in disbelief. "What else could there possibly be?"

"At 8:27 PM the dispatcher received another call. This time it was made by one Bianca Avellis. She claimed to be the friend of a girl named Haylee Rossi and she noticed Haylee was missing from the parking deck of the mall when she went to meet her at the car."

"Hay-Haylee missing...too? What do you mean by missing from the parking deck?"

Officer Henley sighed. "There was evidence pointing to it."

"There's one more thing." The female added. "Their abduction is consistent with the abductions of Martina and Lucia Gellar and the abduction/murder of Ashlynn Marin and Hannah Hall and the police now believe the abductions are connected."

Dave's face lsot what little color was still left in it. "Well...thank you for, notifying me. You can go now...I'll just...you know." He said it as politely as possbile.

"Of course Agent Rossi."

Once the police officers left, Dave grabbed his coat and didn't even bother putting it on. He speed-walked from his office. "Rossi, what's going on?" Morgan asked with concern as he walked into the break room.

"Morgan, please." He mumbled.

"Dave." Hotch said sternly as he walked into the break room. "What did those police officers want?"

Emily's ears perked up. "Police officers?"

JJ eyed him. "They wanted us to look at a case or something?"

Dave shook his head. "No, no not that. Look, Hotch...I need the rest of the night off."

"Of course, why?"

"Those bastards who abducted the sisters from Garrisonville and those other two girls from Faquier County- Haylee and Harper were next on thier list."

"Oh!" Emily exclaimed.

"Rossi, I'm sorry-"

"Morgan, it isn't your fault. I swear to God if those bastards so much as _touch _them-" Dave's emotions were starting to spiral.

"Dave we need you calm." Hotch said sternly.

"Hotch! They have them! Nobody has any idea where-"

The sound of several pairs of feet coming towards them stopped his beginning rant. Two women stood there, along with one man. The first woman was section chief Erin Strauss. The man was a short man with black hair and brown eyes. The man's height was even more pitiful when compared to the tall woman with auburn hair and green eyes who looked reluctant to be there.

Dave recognized the auburn-haired woman as his across the street neighbor. "Amy?" He asked.

Strauss raised her eyebrows. "Agent Rossi, you know Agent Sweetwater?"

"Her daughter is Haylee's best friend."

"Oh...well Agent Rossi can you guess what I have brought Supervisory Special Agents Sweetwater and Collins here?"

Dave was confused. "No, not really."

Strauss looked smugly. "The news of your daughters' abduction has already made the news. Agent Sweetwater's team had had abduction cases like these all over the coast of Virginia for the past four years. They were never officially connected because local law enforcement never figured it out. The FBI didn't have enough to stage an investigation."

"Until now." Amy added softly. Even a woman as confident and brave as her was intimidated by Strauss.

"Correct. Agent Sweetwater, would you like to explain to Agents Hotchner and Rossi everything you know?"

"Um, with all due respect, there sin't time to go over _everything _we have accumulated over the y-"

"_Just _a summary, Agent."

Amy nodded, "Yes'm." She turned to Dave and Hotch. "Basically, any information that can help find Haylee and Harper would be found in the files in mine and Collins' hands. These bastards have been getting away with this stuff for _years. _They may be some of the sickest people in existence, but they way they organize it is just genius- you have to admit. They abduct sisters, cousins, or best friends in pairs- two pairs at once. There are a lot of holes in our information-"

"-and we weren't really ready to share it all-" Collins glared at Strauss.

"-but incomplete investigations might help..." Amy trailed off before picking up again. "Anyway, the Stafford police, Garrisonville police, and Virginia state police have officially asked the FBI to come and look into it. Strauss wants my team to work the case because we have all of the current information-"

"-_but_ this case is a little too, um, Amy?"

"A little too...out of our area of expertise. One of our other agents suggested getting a BAU team. I agreed and I was thinking any other one but yours- taking your personal involvement into consideration of course, nothing personal it's just-"

"Agent Sweetwater, stay on topic!" Strauss barked.

"Yes ma'am, of course. Anyway, your team is the only one available." After saying this, Amy immediately shrunk back. Despite being the leader of her team in the Violent Crimes unit, she was reduced to a scared puppy around Strauss.

Hotch looked at the stacks of thick folders in Amy's and SSA Collins' arms. Hotch looked at Dave. "Do you think you can handle this?"

"I want to know every single thing as soon as it's figured out. I say we work it." He said without hesitation. The rest of the team nodded in agreement.

"Agent Sweetwater you have twenty minutes to debrief my team on everything your team knows." Hotch said in his usual stern tone.

Amy actually smiled a little. It was one of those "professional" smiles, like they were making investment deals. "Yes, Agent Hotchner." She, Collins and the BAU team went into the conference room to discuss the case.

* * *

><p>Yes, Amy is Lindzi's mother :)<p> 


	3. Realization

**Disclaimer: Does anybody even really read these-? No? Okay, then I'm not even going to bother mentioning I don't own Criminal Minds.**

**Hehe Dave gets to use his favorite word in this chapter- "Bastard."**

**(Ever notice he says that a lot?)**

* * *

><p><strong>Realization<strong>

* * *

><p><em>David Rossi's POV…<em>

I stood with Hotch and most of the members of Amy's team. Amy was coming to a close about informing the BAU team about the case. Almost immediately it became clear that we were dealing with a group of UnSubs. According to the information possessed by Amy's team, the UnSubs held up to four teenage girls at once.

_Brunettes. I thought, _They like brunettes. First there were the Zagivlia twins, age sixteen three years ago from Culpeper county. Then there were the Moretti twins, age fifteen, from Prince William county. The cycle continued across Coastal andCentral Virginia for years. The body count was disgusting.__

"Of course, we all know which four girls they have now." Amy said, tacking up the photographs of Martina and Lucia Gellar next to the piece of white paper she'd written their abduction date on. She turned to me and bit her lip. "We'll have to get a picture of the girls to the police."

I nodded, trying to think of where I'd have one that is good enough. The one on my desk wouldn't do- well, I figured I could have given them that one, too, but I needed one of them each on their own. "I'm not sure if I have one."

She nodded, "I don't think that will be a problem. Their friends probably have over a hundred to choose from on their cameras- I'll check on Lindzi's." She pulled a little pink camera out of her purse. I gave her a questioning look before she she took it after she grounded Lindzi for her F.

"Oh!" Garcia exclaimed. "I have some on mine- be right back." She hurried off to her lair and came back with her camera. "Prentiss and I took them shopping again just before Thanksgiving." She explained as she flipped through the pictures. She finally came to a few that would work.

"Can you-" Amy started.

"Put the ones that will be useful on a memory stick?" She pulled one out of her pocket. "Way ahead of you."

"Where did you find her and can I possibly clone her?" Amy asked. I spite of myself, I laughed.

After the joke wore off, I just looked down again and tried not to think about what those sick bastards were doing to them. All of the other girls were beaten, raped, strangled and dumped in a river. The only thing stopping me from assuming they were already dead is the multiple UnSubs. Had we only believed there was one I would have lost hope from the start.

"You know, nobody will hold it against you if you don't want to work the case due to your personal connection." Morgan said.

I shook my head. "No. I want to know every detail and see every piece of evidence once it is found. I have to."

"We'll find them." He said.

_Yeah. I hope._

**~.*~.***~.*~.*

_Harper's POV…_

"Ow, my head." I groaned as I finally came to. "Huh?" I squeaked as I ran my fingers across the surface I was lying on. It felt like concrete.

"This is their basement." Said a tiny, quiet voice.

"Who are you?" I mumbled.

"Lucia Gellar."

I gasped and sat up, "You're one of the missing girls!"

Lucia nodded, "I am. My sister is somewhere down here. You and your sister are now the missing girls, too.

"What?" I whispered. "The grabbed Haylee, too?"

"They're kidnapping sisters, dumbass." Said a new voice. I recognized the girl as Martina Gellar, despite all of the bruises on her face and arms.

"Martina." Lucia scolded softly.

"Don't Martina, me!"

"You're supposed to be attending to the other girl."

"Her name is Haylee." I said with a low growl.

Martina rolled her eyes. "What's there to attended to? She's just out cold like _she _was a few moments ago."

Lucia was growing annoyed at her sister when she turned her head around and answered, "It's what Ashlynn Marin and Hannah Hall did for us."

"Yeah. And they're _dead_."

"Shut up! Just shut up!" Lucia shouted at her sister.

"Keep it down or I'll kill ya right now!" Shouted down a male voice.

Martina and Lucia squealed in fear and Lucia moved protectively in front of me. "Who was that?" I asked once the door was closed.

"One of the guys holding us, stupid." Martina scoffed.

"There are four of them. Remember the guy holding the video camera?" Lucia asked sweetly. I nodded. "He's the nicest one- he sneaks us extra food and sometimes lets us outside...one at a time of course."

"Uhhh what just happened?" A groan came form the other end of the room.

"Martina go check on her." Lucia commanded of her older sister.

"Why?"

"Just. Do. It."

**~.*~.***~.*~.*

_Danielle's POV..._

_California, 3 hr. time difference_

I took another sip of wine before calling the maid in to fill up my glass. I was flipping through the channels and by chance flipped past HLN news. Nancy Grace was on and as I passed it I saw only four words, "Serial kidnappings in Virginia" and immediately switched back.

_...currently missing and still believed to be alive are sisters Martina and Lucia Gellar. Both girls were abducted from a football game at their local high school, North Stafford High, in Garrisonville, Virginia. The girls have been missing for over a week now. The most recent abductions occurred less than six hours ago. Twin sisters Haylee and Harper Rossi were abducted from locations about ten minutes away from Garrisonville in Stafford County. Haylee Rossi was reported missing from a shopping mall by her friend Bianca Avellis at approximately 8:27 PM Eastern Standard Time. Less than and hour earlier at 7:31 Harper Rossi made a 9-1-1 call from the family home- which I am standing outside right now- during which she described two men breaking in and one even attacked her. There were sounds of a struggle before the call ended._

_"Now, I understand that the father of the Rossi girls is quite famous?" Nancy Grace asked her news correspondent in Virginia._

_"That is correct Nancy. Their father is renowned true-crime author and one of the founding fathers of the FBI's Behavioral Analysis Unit, David Rossi."_

_"How recent did you say these abductions were?"_

_"The Rossi twins were abducted less than six hours ago."_

_"Do the Stafford police believe their father's fame has anything to do with it?" Nany Grace asked, pointing her pen at the cameras._

_The correspondent shakes her head, "As these abductions are serial it is not believed that his fame is a contributing factor. However, the police has turned this case over to the FBI."_

_"Why exactly is tihs now an FBI case?"_

_"Serial abductions like this have been happening around coastal and central Virginia for three years now-"_

_"Three whole years and nobody has connected them? What's this about?"_

_"The cases occurred in different cities and counties across Virginia. The crossed county and jurisdiction lines and therefore were not connected until the Rossi twins' abductions."_

_Nancy Grace looked down at her papers and then looked back up at the cameras. "I understand that David Rossi is a single parent to these girls?"_

_"That is correct, Nancy. For the past seven months he has been their sole caregiver."_

_"Has their mother been notified?"_

_"We have no contact numbers for their mother."_

_"Is she no longer a part of their life?" _

_"We have no information on that."_

_"Has their father spoken to the press, yet?"_

_The correspondent shook her again. "He has yet to make an address and it is not believed that he will unless he sees it helpful to the case."_

_"And is he currently in the Bureau?"_

_"Yes."_

_"Now wait, did you say that Haylee Rossi's _friend _reported her missing and Harper was abducted from the home?"_

_"Yes."_

_Nancy Grace nods ever so slightly before asking another question, "As fresh as the abductions are, what has the local response been?"_

_"Oh, the local response and outreach has been tremendous. The teenage girl who lives directly across the street is the best friend of Haylee Rossi and the teenage girl who is their backyard neighbor is Harper's best friend. I spoke to the two of them off-camera a little over and hour. They are both scared but they both said that worrying like nervous wrecks won't help find their friends and the best thing to do is stay calm. Haylee's friend said she will be praying fervently. The Stafford Nazarene Church where three of the missing girls- Martina and Lucia Gellar and Haylee Rossi- frequently attend is holding a candlelight vigil tomorrow evening and will have a special portion of the Sunday service tomorrow dedicated to them. Of course the thought, prayers and well-wishes of the communities go out to the parents and extended families of all the missing girls."_

_"Thank you." She paused. "Unfortunately, that is all the time we have for tonight. If you have any tips for this case call the FBI tipline. No detail is too small- help put these disgusting people away for life. Until next time, good night America this is Nancy Grace."_

The wine glass fell from my hand and I screamed. I logged onto my laptop and ordered a plane ticket to Richmond before I could think to stop myself.

**~.*~.***~.*~.*

_Third Person POV..._

Haylee laid curled up in a ball on the concrete basement floor, rocking herself back and forth. She massaged her head when it hurt from being hit with the baseball bat. She was seriously hoping she didn't have a concussion from it. She had had concussions before and it felt like she had another, but she wasn't sure. A lot of things can feel like a concussion she supposed. Maybe not, maybe only a concussion can feel like one, but she's no expert.

"Hayl?" Asked an all-to-familiar voice.

"Harp? What the- they got you, too?"

"Yeah. They're taking sisters."

"Oh!" Haylee gasped, grabbing her twin sister and holding her close.

"Get a room." A tall, snobby looking brunette snapped.

"Martina, be nice!"

"Lucia, shut up! I'm older!"

"Martina? Lucia?" Haylee gave Harper a look.

Harper nodded, "Gellar."

"This is bad." Haylee mumbled, head between her knees.

"Psh, ya think? Retard."

"Shut up, Martina!" Lucia shrieked. "I apologize for my sister. She's...well just ignore her."

Martina rolled her eyes and said nothing while Haylee gave a weak giggle. Haylee could not keep her giggling up for more than a few second before whining, "I want to go home, Harper. I miss home."

"I know." Harper whispered comfortingly to her older twin.

"Touching." Martina said haughtily.

"Why are you such a bitch?" Haylee asked bluntly with a syrupy-sweet voice.

"You and your stupid sister are here. That means I'll die soon then Lucia here will be soon to follow." Martina said coldly.

"That doesn't mean you have the right to take it out on us!" Haylee shouted, trying to stand but discovering she was too weak and dizzy from being knocked out.

"Rest." Lucia ordered. "You need your strength."

"Strength? For what?" Harper asked Lucia.

"What they do to you, stupids."

"Martina, stop!" Lucia shouted before turned to the twins and softly whispering, "They'll hurt you. A lot. But I promise if there is anything I can do to stop any part of it I can, I will."

"But-" Haylee began. She did not feel it was fair to make Lucia Gellar protect her and her sister.

"Sh...no no no. Don't fight me on this. You will be thankful later." With that, Lucia stood up and wandered off to another dark corner of the basement.

Martina just glared at the Rossi sisters before stomping off to join Lucia. Once Martina was gone, Harper pulled Haylee closer to her and wrapped her arms protectively around her sister. Haylee did the same and rested her head on her sister's shoulder.

Harper looked up and lifted her head in the direction she saw the Gellar girls wander off to. "Is it safe to fall asleep?"

"Yes. They leave you alone for your first twenty-four hours here. They want you to have time to recuperate before they start to hurt you." Lucia's friendly voice replied. "Martina, I'm cold." She whispered to her big sister.

"Here." Martina said gruffly. There were shuffling noises which suggested they too were snuggling for warmth and protection.

Harper heard Haylee stomach growl and chuckled. "Hungry?"

"I didn't eat dinner yet."

"I have a half eaten gluten-free fruit bar in my front pocket. You can have it."

"Are you sure?" Haylee whispered, sitting up and not leaning on her sister anymore.

"Of course." Harper shifted so she could pull the fruit bar from her pocket. Once if was in her hands, she handed it to Haylee. Haylee thanked her graciously. "No problem. Now go to sleep so I can." Haylee nodded and didn't speak anymore that night.

Oddly enough, Harper never did fall asleep. Too scared, she supposed. But in reality, it was to protect her older sister. _They'll find us, Haylee. Daddy's team will want in on the investigation for sure, and they're the best there is._

_I hope._

**~.*~.***~.*~.*

Dave did not even leave the Academy until one o' clock in the morning. In spite of his spiraling emotions he had yet to cry over the abduction of his daughters. Though he knew they were probably being raped or beaten as he drove home, he didn't cry. Maybe it was because he wasn't really one to show emotions through tears. Maybe it was because the shock left him temporarily numb. Or maybe is was because he knew crying and giving in to total hopelessness would do nothing to save them. Maybe it was because he knew he would only be productive is he could stay strong and do all he could to help them.

The outside of the house looked the same as always. Perhaps the only thing Dave noticed that seemed off was the fact that there were no lights on. As he unlocked the door however, he began to miss the sound of teenagerish giggling and arguing that he was always welcomed home with. No matter how late it was the girls always stayed up to wait for him. He always told them to just go to bed before midnight, but they never listened. The girls much preferred to spend what little time they could with him before all three of them became too tired to even look at one another- because apparently _that _takes up _sooo _much energy.

He flicked the entryway lights on and gasped at how empty the house felt. One would think he wouldn't mind feeling alone after the years of childless divorces, but the past seven months had taken their toll on him. He wasn't sure that he remembered exactly how _alone _being alone felt. He walked toward his bedroom downstairs and passed the door to the guest half-bath. He shuddered when he saw the bullet hole near the lock. The police told him none of his younger daughter's blood was shed in the house and that the bullet was only used to break the lock. That news- despite the tinge of happiness it brought- did little to console him. The fact of the matter still was, his only immediate family was missing and in the hands of some sick bastards while he was safe at home.

_Safe. Is there even such a thing?_

Perhaps the most disturbing part of the whole situation was that one of his daughters was abducted from that very house and from a spot Dave could see from where he was standing.

The CSIs came through earlier and gathered all of the evidence they could. At least that meant all of the evidence of a crime was gone- save the bullet hole in the door (but if Dave really squinted his eyes and tilted his head to the left side and maybe turned off the nearest light it kind of looked like someone took a knife and carved a _really _perfect circle in it.)

Still in his work clothes, he retreated to his bedroom to try and sleep. He wasn't up for changing into anything more comfortable_. _He wasn't sure that he _could_ sleep anyway- the worry was like being stuck with an IV full of caffeine.

Out of impulse, he walked into the living room and turned on the TV. The girls had been watching the news last and that was what came on. Some CNN reporter was talking about the missing girls in Virginia. It wasn't until the pictures of Martina and Lucia Gellar left the screen that it really registered in his mind.

Harper's picture was the first to be shown on screen. It was taken in the mall inside one of those stores that sold tiny bikinis in the fall. Harper was holding the top up to her shirt and had a goofy expression on her face. The picture that popped up beside it was one of her trying to smile with a slushie straw in the corner of her mouth. The third picture was one Dave was sure wasn't taken by Garcia. He figured it must have come from the camera Amy had taken form Lindzi. It was a more serious picture, one taken in the Rossi's kitchen. In it, Harper was smiling her normal toothy grin and she had a cupcake missing one bite in her hands. One who knew her well could look at the picture and tell that the cupcake was gluten-free. There was even a light smear of chocolate frosting on her nose.

Dave suppressed the urge to punch a hole in the wall at seeing the pictures of his younger daughter- smiling, completely unaware of what was soon to come.

CNN decided to show three photos of Haylee, next. One was a close-up of her sitting in the mall food court messing with her iPhone, barely looking up at the camera with a slightly nonchalant look on her face. The second was a picture of her sitting on the edge of the water fountain in the mall, laughing at something somebody said. Dave was sure it was probably a sarcastic comment Harper said or something random Garcia thought up. The third one of Haylee was perhaps the most personal. It too was taken in the Rossi's house; this time, in Haylee's own bedroom. She was lying on her stomach on the floor of her room beside her bed with a book open in front of her. She seemed to be reluctantly looking up at the camera.

_That one has to be from Lindzi's camera. _

It was then that the full effect of it all hit him. "Some sick bastards have my daughters." He said to himself. "And I can do nothing."


	4. Your Fault

**Disclaimer: Does anybody even really read these-? No? Okay, then I'm not even going to bother mentioning I don't own Criminal Minds.**

**I apologize, this chapter is shorter than the last one!**

**Thank you to everyone who has reviewed, favorited and alerted so far! Alunabelle Night Shadow , p95000 , Ren Kayashima , Katie, xFender'sGirlx , babygirl12020 , Deadly Papegoja , dyallon , hxchick , HyperHippo , ImaginativeCow and MaryEllen1960** I really appreciate it! :D

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><p><strong>Your Fault<strong>

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><p><em>Haylee's POV…<em>

I woke up on the floor of the basement, still snuggling with Harper. The door of the basement suddenly sung open and a pissed off man who looked Hotch's age stormed in. "All four of you! Come with me!" He barked. Martina and Lucia jumped up right away, but Harper and I didn't. We were more than a little confused, but I think we got the message when Martina kicked Harper in the spine and called her a retard, demanding she get up. I wanted to slap her across the face but I stopped myself. _Now isn't the time._

The man lead us upstairs to a room that looked like a normal hallway. In fact, it was. There were two younger men in the room at the end of the hallway, a living room-type area. No, it was an actual living room. The youngest man, the one who held the video camera while abducting me, politely asked us all to sit down. Had it not been for the fact that he kidnapped me, I'd of tried flirting just then.

The oldest man walked right up to Harper as soon as she sat down and slapped her. "You little bitch do you know what you and your sister have gotten us into?" He screamed at the top of his lungs.

"Leave them alone, Dad!" Shouted the man who had held the camera.

The older man punched the younger in the jaw which shut him up. He then just turned his anger back to Harper and knocked her to the ground before kicking her in the gut. Using a kick to accent each word, "You. Did. This! It. Is. All. Your. Fault!"

I saw tears begin to form in Harper's eyes and intervened. "What are you talking about?"

"Don't act like you don't know." The man between the ages of the older and younger said, taking a drag from his cigarette.

I shook my head, "I'm sorry, I-I don't. Gyah!" I screamed as he raised his hand to hit me. The pain is so numbing I almost don't feel it. Almost.

"Dad, maybe she really doesn't know. Perhaps show them the news clip from last night's Nancy Grace?" The youngest man suggested. The oldest reluctantly agreed and tossed the remote to the third man, perhaps his older son. I helped Harper up off the ground and held her hand protectively as we watched the Nancy Grace clip.

"...currently missing and still believed to be alive are sisters Martina and Lucia Gellar. Both girls were abducted from a football game at their local high school, North Stafford High, in Garrisonville, Virginia. The girls have been missing for over a week now. The most recent abductions occurred less than six hours ago. Twin sisters Haylee and Harper Rossi were abducted from locations about ten minutes away from Garrisonville in Stafford County. Haylee Rossi was reported missing from a shopping mall by her friend Bianca Avellis at approximately 8:27 PM Eastern Standard Time. Less than and hour earlier at 7:31 Harper Rossi made a 9-1-1 call from the family home- which I am standing outside right now- during which she described two men breaking in and one even attacked her. There were sounds of a struggle before the call ended."

"Now, I understand that the father of the Rossi girls is quite famous?"

"That is correct Nancy. Their father is renowned true-crime author and one of the founding fathers of the FBI's Behavioral Analysis Unit, David Rossi."

The man with the cigarette paused the DVR recording right there. "See how much trouble we are in because of you?" He took his cigarette and burnt it on Harper's palm. She cried out in pain and he just laughed.

"Technically, you idiots brought it upon yourselves." Lucia said quickly, purposely turning his anger on her instead of my sister. _But why?_

"Son, wait." The father commanded.

"Yes, sir."

The father walked in front of Harper and I and crouched to our level. "So I hear your Daddy is quite rich and famous, huh honeybears?" He reached his hand over to Harper's thigh and just before he could touch her, I spat in his face. He wiped my spit from his eyes and smirked at me. "Just for that, little Missy, I'm going to have my sons take some extra time on you."

"Leave them alone." Lucia said bravely.

"What was that? What was that you little whore?" The man with a cigarette inquired.

"Leave them alone. It's not their fault their the daughters of some famous person. Besides, don't you have to kill me and Martina before you can kill them? Gotta stick to your pattern right?"

I was at a loss as to what the reason for Lucia's kindness was and I wanted to yell at her and tell her not to, but my own selfish desire to survive overpowered that. The youngest man timidly approached his father and brother with a question, "Perhaps if we let these new ones go now and just take two others it will be okay?"

"You idiot they saw our faces! They have to die." The middle man said, taking a drag from his cigarette and blowing it in his face.

"Um, sir?" Harper spoke up timidly.

The oldest man guffawed before bending down to Harper's level. "What?" He snapped.

"You see, my sister and I do not know your names. If we have descriptions but not names, then how much help will we be?"

I picked up where Harper left off. "Out of the 8,001,024 people living in Virginia there has to be several who look similar to you. If you were to dye your hair and get the heck out of Dodge, then-"

"Shut up! Shut! Up! None of you are getting out of here alive so your bargaining had better stop or else we will make it ten times worse! Anthony take them to the basement." The father commanded of the youngest man.

"Yes Dad." He politely helped us up and led us back to the basement.

**~.*~.***~.*~.*

_Third Person POV..._

Dave walked into the Stafford Police Department where the two FBI teams would meet with local police. The Stafford Police had officially invited the teams to assist in working the case. Dave was sure he looked like hell. Total amount of sleep? Maybe ten minutes before his alarm clock woke him up. At least the shower helped...maybe.

All of the agents from both teams were there except for Amy. Dave looked to Hotch and shifted his eyes toward the empty seat between Prentiss and a young male agent from her team. "She offered to skip church today to be here early, but from what little of a profile we have-" Hotch explained, motioning to Prentiss to pass him the notebook beside her and Reid. She passed him the notebook and Hotch showed it to Dave. "I was watching Nancy Grace last night and they were talking about the case. The reporter they had in Virginia mentioned the church Haylee and the Gellar girls attend will be dedicating part of the service to them, so I asked Amy to attend like she would every Sunday, but take notice and possibly pictures of every unfamiliar man."

Dave nodded, admiring Hotch's quick thinking and thankful for Amy's willingness to play it cool. He turned his attention to the board with the gruesome photos and case details tacked up on it. The only four photos without a post mortem picture beside them were, of course, of the Martina and Lucia Gellar and of Dave's own daughters. But he couldn't seem to see that. Every time his eyes even caught a glimpse of one of the dead bodies he saw Haylee or Harper there, dumped like garbage after being beaten and raped. _And strangled. _

Not that he thought about it often, but Dave would have much preferred to be shot execution style than be strangled. Strangulation is no gentle way to go- he supposed being shot wasn't either. But if done right would it not be quicker?

A shiver ran down his spine before he finally sat down between Hotch and a Hispanic man a little older than Morgan. Agent Vasquez, his Bureau ID read. A glance around the room made him realize the amount of testosterone in the room was more than double the amount while working a normal case. He read the IDs of the other team- SSA Collins, SSA Vasquez, SSA Luke, SSA Broom and SSA Beaudoin were all men. The only female helping the BAU team on the case was SSA Sweetwater.

Dave could empathize with her (on being out numbered by the opposite sex, that is.) At home, he was always out number by the girls. _If only they could still be there. Yeah, they're not dead yet, but with the way these UnSubs work...they have a week. At best._

The UnSubs had a specific cycle: Kidnap a set of sisters, keep them for two days before kidnapping the next set, kill the sisters in the first set three days later, kidnap another set three days later, kill the sisters in set two three days later then repeat the cycle.

So Martina and Lucia Gellar had about two and a half days left. Haylee and Harper, six, at best. Dave was about to get up and leave the room for some air when Amy walked in with Lindzi's pink camera in hand. "I got pictures like you asked." She said quietly before looking down at Dave. "You look like hell," She said rather bluntly. "How much sleep did you get?"

"Maybe ten minutes." Was his mumbled response. Amy sympathetically squeezed his shoulder. "How was, er, church? Like, how was Lindzi?"

Amy's perpetual smile faded a little as she nervously pushed her hair from her face. "Oh it was...well it was okay I guess. Pastor Troy gave the missing girls a nice mention and a big portion of the prayer before the sermon was devoted to them. Lindzi's really worried. She and that Russian boy- what's his name?- just kind of sat there stoically all day until prayer. They sat together at the alter with all of Haylee's other church friends- oh! The pictures- Hotch."

Hotch took the camera from Amy's hands.

"Go back about four. That's where they start...I'm sorry I couldn't find more, but there were only four unfamiliar men."

"No, this is perfect. Thank you."

"Not to sound like I'm doubting your profiling or anything, but why would I need to search for unfamiliar men at church this morning?"

"Because these UnSubs want to inflict as much pain and grief as possible." Dave answered blankly. "They kidnap, beat, rape and strangle sisters. That inflicts twice as much pain on the families. Knowing that Pastor Troy would mention the four of them on Sunday just gave them a nice opportunity to enjoy it with no risk to them." He laughed sadistically before continuing, "I mean, who would suspect a stranger showing up at church? Those bastards are pretty damned lucky."

It all fell silent at his explanation. No matter how much he stared blankly at the table and no matter how flatly he said it, they could tell he said what he was feeling; unconsciously. In fact, he didn't realize _exactly _what he'd said until he looked up to see everyone staring at him sympathetically.

"Um, I need some air." He said quickly, standing up and leaving to step outside the police station.

_It's all your fault, you stupid bastard. If you had only been there then none of this would have happened._

**~.*~.***~.*~.*

Danielle Smith pulled her rental car up to the FBI Academy. She planned on interrogating Dave about why he'd let this happen to their daughters- it was all _his _fault. If she hadn't left them with him then none of this would have happened. She smoked a cigarette before walking into the building.

"Excuse me," She asked the person at the front office. "Do you know if David Rossi is away on a case?"

"He's working a case in the state, ma'am. May I ask you name?"

"Danielle Smith."

"I can prepare a message for him. He's working a pretty important case; did you hear his daughters got kidnapped? A shame, really."

"That won't be necessary. Yes, I know. Do you think you can give me his contact information?"

"Ma'am, I can't disclose that to-"

"I apologize for interrupting you again, but I'm not just anybody. I'm his ex-wife- the mother of his two daughters?"

The younger women bit her lip. "I'm sorry, I still can't give his information out. Except for what would be on his card." She pressed a few keys on the computer and wrote down a few things. "Here you are, ma'am."

"Thank you."

Danielle stuffed the paper into her bra and left the Academy to return to hotel. She would call Dave there, give him a piece of her mind.

**~.*~.***~.*~.*

Martina Gellar banged her head against the wall of the basement. "I hate you! Why? Why me?"

"Martina-" Harper said compassionately. _Crack! _Martina's palm collided with Harper's face. "Oh!" Harper gasped in surprise.

"You! You did this! Now that they know who your _Daddy _is they won't care about me and Lucia! We're more disposable than _ever _now that they have the daughters of some rich and famous person!" Martina rolled her eyes and scoffed. "Perfect. Just. Perfect."

_Crack! _"Ouch!" Martina shouted.

"Oh!" Harper gasped in shock.

"Whoa." Lucia said, mouth hanging open.

The usually mild-mannered Haylee slapped Martina. "It's not our fault! What, so it was our _choice _to have a well-known father? It was our _choice _to get kidnapped? Stop being so ignorant and actually think about your accusations before you make them!"

Martina rolled her eyes before flouncing off to her corner of the basement.

The basement door opened and a man came down. He flicked a light on and the Rossi twins gasped. This man...he was new. He was older than the man with the cigarette but younger than the father. Another son, maybe?

_What kind of family is this? _Was the thought on everyone's minds.

"You. Spit girl. Come with me." He pointed at Haylee.

"You bastard! Like hell she'll go with you!" Harper screamed.

He smirked. "Shut up, girlie. My brother will come for you later." He turned his attention back to Haylee. "Now."

"You _sick _bastard!" Haylee shouted.

The man just laughed sadistically and picked up Haylee. She screamed as loud as she could but it was all to no avail. Nobody could help her now.

_This is my fault. I shouldn't have spit in the old guy's face._


	5. Blame Games

**Disclaimer: Does anybody even really read these-? No? Okay, then I'm not even going to bother mentioning I don't own Criminal Minds.**

**Yep. I'm such a CM nerd- I googled for like, twenty minutes to figure out the name of Dave's priest friend in D.C. FOUND IT!**

**Okay my mom is being a total Communist and is all, "Go to bed because you freaked out over an essay at school today and it's cuz your tired even though it's cuz it was way above your ninth grade level" so I just wanted to post a little something.**

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><p><strong>Blame Games<strong>

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><p><em>Third Person POV…<em>

Dave stood leaning against the exterior of the Stafford Police Department, cup of coffee in hand. The brick wall was his only comfort at the time being. What did he normally do when a case got tough? Oh, right. He would call his girls and check in just because he _can_. Now that was an impossibility. It wasn't like he had anybody else to bother- well maybe his friend Father James Davison, but the D.C. priest didn't yet know Dave even _had _daughters, much less that they were missing. Kidnapping cases never seem to make the news other than local and perhaps the news channels of some other nearby counties. Either way, that eliminated talking to Jimmy.

_Great. _He thought.

He heard the glass door of the station swing open. _Three guesses who. _"Dave." The stoic voice called.

"Aaron." He said quietly, not looking at his best friend.

Hotch moved to stand next to his friend. Letting the slightest bit of sympathy show on his face he said, "You alright?"

"I've been better." He said half-heartedly.

"If you want to sit this one out, you can."

"I can't do that, Aaron. If I sit it out then I'll be doing nothing but sitting around the house all day worrying and...and getting into Harper's stash of gluten-free cupcakes." He could hardly believe himself for making that joke that made both he and Hotch laugh awkwardly; unsure if they really should have been laughing.

"Better than getting into Haylee's Pepsi stash." Hotch joked back.

Dave grinned, "Yeah, that too." He sighed and looked down at his feet and mumbled something.

"Mumbling, Dave."

"It's my fault, Hotch."

Hotch shook his head, "Dave you can't blame yourself for this."

"Aaron, if I didn't ground Harper for as long as I did after that party then she wouldn't even have been home. She probably would have tagged along with Haylee and Bianca and the UnSubs couldn't have gotten them alone. Dammit, Aaron at least she called me to get her instead of getting in the car with some drunk teenager!"

"Dave stop blaming yourself for everything. _None _of this is your fault."

He half-smiled and looked up at Hotch. "You know, I don't even remember what it was like before them. I honestly cannot remember; I know it's only been seven months but...it feels like a lot longer." Hotch jut let his friend let it out. "I can't even begin to imagine what it would be like without them again. It's just not right, Aaron. They did nothing to deserve what is happening to them." He stopped when he felt a hand on his shoulder.

"I know, Dave." He took a breath before saying, "There is another M.O. to these UnSubs. They record the abductions...on video camera. They then send them to the local police stations. The Stafford police received Haylee's and Harper's this morning."

David's face lost what little color it had left at hearing that. "Hotch-"

"You don't have to watch them if you don't-"

"We might be able to learn something from them. I have to."

"Okay. Amy suggested we watch them now."

Dave nodded, "I'll be there in a second. I just need another moment."

"Sure, Dave."

~.*~.*~.*~.*

Haylee screamed as the man threw her back into the basement. She tumbled down the wooden stairs and onto the concrete floor. "Ouch!" She shrieked. Harper hurried toward her sister as fast as she could in the dark. She took her sister's hand and asked her if she was okay. Haylee just leaned against her sister and burst into tears. "Harper." She whispered.

"Hayl-"

"I d-don't want to talk about it, 'kay sissy?"

Harper's eyed widened. They used to call each other 'sissy' all the time when they were little kids. It was always when one of them was going through a tough time. The last time Harper could remember Haylee calling her 'sissy' was after she witnessed Caitlynn Coward drown in the Nowood River. _She was so depressed after that..._

"Okay, Hayl." Harper said, hugging her sister protectively. "But you know you can always tell me." Haylee just shook her head and cried.

"For God's sake! They raped her." Martina's voice shouted out from the other end of the basement, which just made Haylee cry harder.

Harper's anger reached it's breaking point and she stood up with such force that it knocked her sister out of the way. "Listen, bitch-!"

"That's not good language for a Jesus-freak." Martina teased.

"First of all, Haylee's the one who shows up at church all the time. Second, I don't think you're one to lecture me about language. I'll say bitch again if you want. Bitch."

"Ooh so bad."

Harper found where Martina's voice was coming from and aimed a slap at the person. "Ow!" Lucia screamed. Harper apologized profusely and Lucia just giggled and told her it was OK until- _Smack! _Martina's palm collided with Harper's cheek. She retaliated with an ever harder slap. Then Martina goes again. Then Harper. Martina. Harper. Martina. Harper-

"Stop it!" Haylee screamed from the other end of the basement.

"Oh my gosh!" Harper ran back to her sister. "I'm so sorry, I-"

"I don't care! Both of you just stop fighting! Four men are holding us here and they've been doing this for years without getting caught! We're all going to die in less than a week so stop spending it fighting!"

"We're not going to die Haylee!" Harper argued hopefully. "R-right? The FBI is working on this case for sure now, and it's a serial- so they'll get a BAU team?"

"They don't have enough to go on." Haylee said pessimistically.

"She's right, Russo. We'll die here." Martina said.

"Our last name is _Rossi_." Harper corrected.

Martina grinned maliciously, "Who cares, Rosso."

"Ugh! Okay now say it with me. Rossi. Ro-ssi."

"Whatever."

"CAn I please kill her, Haylee?" Harper begged.

"No!" Haylee screamed through her tears.

Harper sat down on the basement floor beside her sister. "Sissy, I'm-" Haylee slaps her sister's arms away. "Oh!"

"Go. A. Way."

"Haylee-"

"Please? I just want to be alone."

"Okay." Harper whispered, wanting to cry herself.

~.*~.*~.*~.*

_Dave's team usually works on cases at the local police departments, right? Right. Okay well Stafford..._ She pulled into the station parking lot and got out her the rental car.

She hurried through the door and scanned the department for Dave. Sure, she hadn't seen him in nearly sixteen years, but she can make an educated g-

"What the hell are you doing here?" A voice hissed in a snakelike manner.

Danielle recognized the voice from the phone. "Dave..." She breathed. _No! Don't act happy to see him, it's all his fault!_ An agent behind Dave pressed the 'POWER' button on some computer screen to turn off whatever it was the agents were looking at.

"I said, what the hell are you doing here, Danielle?"


	6. Personal

**Disclaimer: Does anybody even really read these-? No? Okay, then I'm not even going to bother mentioning I don't own Criminal Minds.**

**Next chapter will be the last of the abduction arc :)**

* * *

><p><strong>Personal<strong>

* * *

><p><em>Third Person POV…<em>

Danielle swallowed uncomfortably at Dave's harsh question. "I-I-I, um-" She stammered.

"May I have a word outside?" He seethed at Danielle through his teeth.

"Um- uh- s-sure." She stuttered.

"Dave," Hotch cautioned. "Don't be too harsh."

"Hotch, she's lucky she's a woman. Otherwise she'd have a broken nose by now." Dave whispered to his best friend.

In spit of himself, Hotch smiled as his best friend went outside to have a chat with his ex-wife.

~.*~.*~.*~.*

_David Rossi's POV..._

"What are you doing here?" I snapped at her once we were outside.

"Dave, stop it! I was worried, okay?" She defended.

"You have no right to be worried about them!" I spat back, wanting nothing more than to punch her- but I wouldn't stoop that low. "You chose money, _remember_?" _Gawd what did I see in her fifteen years ago?_

Danielle inhaled angrily and clutched her purse. "I'm their mother! I still gave birth to them- I should be allowed to worry."

"I don't care _who _gave birth to them," I said calmly. "The fact is, you abandoned them and therefore forfeit that title. By all means, be worried Danielle. But worry from afar."

"David Rossi you have no right t-"

"_I _have no right? Look who is talking!" I shouted. _How much trouble would I get in if I punched her? _

"What the hell is that supposed to mean?"

"Oh, I don't know! You had no right to keep them a secret from me for fifteen years and you also had no right to just leave them like that!"

"Dave-"

As I interrupt her, I hear the glass doors of the police station open but I ignore them and tell her exactly what I think of her anyway."No. Stop. There's no _but Dave _about it. The truth is, you are a selfish _bitch _who cares about nobody but herself!"

Her jaw dropped. I suppose she wasn't accustomed to people talking to her like that. "I'm staying in Virginia until they find the girls. Expect to hear from my lawyers about custody."

She moved away from the wall and haughtily flounced over to the rental car.

I gritted my teeth and nearly hissed, "You can't just start a custody battle after you-"

"Oh yeah? Watch me." She slammed the door and flipped me the bird as she drove off.

I glared at her and said to myself, "The middle finger. How mature."

Not thinking anybody else was out there, I turned around quickly to go back inside, but I bumped into someone. Well, two someones. "Hotch...Reid...how much of that did you hear?"

Reid smiled and said, "We heard everything after selfish bitch."

"Then you heard everything."

Hotch gave me a sympathetic look before saying, "Morgan, JJ and Prentiss are going to the Gellar sister's house to look deeper into their personal lives. Reid and I need to do the same for Haylee and Harper," He paused before adding, "If you want, Reid can go with you and Prentiss instead of me. I can go to Garrisonville."

I shook my head, "No. I wouldn't be much help in Garrisonville."

Hotch just nodded in response. This felt wrong- digging into their personal lives. I knew that it meant I might see them alive again, but...

~.*~.*~.*~.*

_Third Person POV..._

The four girls heard the footsteps coming down to the basement and they all cringed before they saw who it was. They visibly relaxed when they saw it was the youngest of their four captors, the man with the video camera.

"G-g-good afternoon," He stuttered.

Mumbles were all the girls cared to offer in response. The man just chuckled and said, "I know, I know. Y'all hate me- I'm fine with that. I was sent to tell you that it is time to cook lunch my father wants the three oldest ones to cook, my brothers wants you-" He pointed at Lucia Gellar.

Lucia paled and bit her lip. She knew what was about to happen to her. Now is about the time they killed the first girl in the set of sisters before she and Martina. Martina screamed at the man who held the video cameras and he just looked at her apologetically.

"Shouting won't save your sister, girly." The oldest man of the four stated.

"Martina," Lucia whispered. "It's okay."

Haylee and Harper fell silent. They needed to be quiet, this was a Martina and Lucia thing.

"Come on," the young man told the twins. "Let's give them some time."

Blankly, the Rossi girls followed the man out of the basement and up to the kitchen. Martina joined them soon after. Her eyes were red from crying and Haylee noticed. She reached for a dish towel and offered it to her. Martina took it then whipped her in the face with it.

"Hey!" Harper exclaimed while her sister touched her hand to her eye.

Haylee's fingers lingered on her close eyelid for a half second longer before she took her left hand and slapped Martina across the face. The slap was powerful enough to force Martina's head to turn to the side.

"You bitch!" The Gellar seethed before slapping Haylee back.

The Italian raised her hand to hit her again, but Harper intervened, "No! Stop, we shouldn't be fighting. Let's try and find some common ground for you two."

Reluctantly, the enemies agreed.

"Great," Harper grinned half-heartedly. "Okay, um...favorite food."

"Chinese," came Haylee's answer.

"Health," was Martina's.

"Okay, uh...three favorite colors?"

"Black, blue and orange because its different."

"White, red and green."

Martina shot a glare at the Rossi twins before letting Harper ask the next question, "Favorite sport?"

"Soccer."

"Softball."

"Hottest actor?"

"Ian Sommerhalder- you know this, Harp."

"Robert Pattinson."

"Ew!" Haylee exclaimed, which just made Martina glare even more.

Harper faceplamed until she found another question. "Ever been outside of the US?"

"Yes."

"No."

"Crap. Okay okay...favorite band? And Haylee, please pick a band that sings in English. If you name one of your foreign language bands then we won't find any sort of common ground."

Haylee sighed and agreed to her sister's conditions. "Hedley, then. They're Canadian, Martina, so you've probably never-"

"I love Hedley. My favorite is actually Linkin Park, but Hedley is a close second."

Harper breathed a sigh of relief before asking one last question. "Favorite Hedley song?"

Haylee bit her lip and pondered for a moment before answering with a firm, "Never Too Late."

Martina shrugged, "I like Streetfight. But that's mostly because the music video features bum a la Jake _three _times!"

Harper rolled her eyes and ordered the ex-enemies to help her with their captor's lunch.

~.*~.*~.*~.*

_Third person POV..._

Dave felt sick to his stomach as he drove with Hotch and Reid to his house. Hotch had been over there enough over the year, so he didn't need directions. After reassuring Hotch and Reid he was okay, he unlocked both locks to let them in. He inhaled sharply when he once again saw the bullet hole in the guest bathroom door. What if Harper hadn't closed that door in time? What they- what if they actually shot her?

He shook the thought from his mind, causing Hotch to raise his eyebrows. "Dave, are you sure you're okay?"

"Yeah, Hotch. Don't...don't worry about me," He sighed and looked down sadly. "The girls' bedrooms are upstairs. Haylee's is the second door on the left and Harper's is at the back of the hall right across from the stairs."

Hotch and Reid nodded and went upstairs, Hotch to Harper's and Reid to Haylee's. Dave stayed downstairs and walked over to the spot on the floor the police said they found the shattered remnants of Harper's cell phone. He blamed himself for Harper being such an easy target. He knew he was being too hard on his daughter for sneaking out. Leniency. His own parents were lenient with all seven of the Rossi children if it was a first-time offense- like sneaking out. Besides, Dave has done worse than sneaking out. _When we find them, Harper can consider herself officially _un-_grounded. _Unintentionally, he thought one more word. _If. _

"Don't think like that, Dave...they'll be okay. We'll find th-"

"Dave." A serious voice from behind him said.

"Hotch?" Was his worried response. That was Hotch's they-just-found-a-body voice. "Did they find-?" He couldn't finish his sentence.

He shook his head. "Garcia just called. We may have something," Hotch pauses before adding, "Not a body. Garcia was looking at the surveillance footage from the mall Haylee was abducted from. There was a man following her and her friend all day. She was able to get a solid image and she is running it through databases now."

* * *

><p>I know, I know. Really short. Probably bad...but I want to move on to the next chapter and then the post abduction drama.<p> 


	7. Found

A/N: Yay! No more missing twins!

Blahhh. It's late. Sorry :( WRiter's block and school started, and I wake up at 5 every morning, get home at 5- 5:15-ish, do homework, eat, shower, go to bed...and repeat. So I've not really had time...but now I've figured out a better schedule!

* * *

><p><strong>Found<strong>

* * *

><p><em>Third Person POV…<em>

Garcia found a match for the man's image so quickly, it was almost unreal, but Dave didn't even begin to wonder if it was, in fact, his imagination. Nor did he want to. His anger at the men who had his daughters was at best, now at a lethal level. If only he could do half the things he was thinking of...

"Tanner Mason, twenty-two years old." Garcia said to Hotch over the phone. "Seems like everyone in his family has a history of crime. Tanner was arrested for attempted manslaughter when he nearly beat a man to death with a baseball bat. He got out of jail about a year ago after being in for only ten months. His father's charges range from drug possession to rape, and he was even accused of murdering his wife but was acquitted due to lack of evidence. Don't even get we started on his oldest brother's wrap sheet. The younger one has one count of auto theft from his teen years."

"Garcia, an address?"

"1183 Denali Drive, Aquia, Virginia."

"Are you kidding me?" Dave seethed through his teeth. "That's six minutes from here!"

"Dave," Hotch warned.

"Sorry." He mumbled, his face red with anger. "Six minutes," he mumbles to himself.

"Let's go," Hotch said.

* * *

><p><em>Harper's POV...<em>

The newly established peace between Martina and my sister is perhaps the reason I was able to serve lunch to the quartet of sickos without spiking it with antifreeze. I seriously considered it, but serial killers or not, murder is still murder, and I doubted my father would be happy if I poisoned four people.

Then again, the aforementioned four people _have _kidnapped his daughters and raped one of them. So actually, perhaps my poisoning them would make his day.

Or his year.

I shrugged as the three of us girls began to leave the dining room. No sooner had Martina turned around to leave, we heard sirens outside. _The police..._ I think with relief.

Martina turned around to face the man and his three sons. "Looks like you loose, you sick sons of bitches."

The man with the cigarette in his mouth chuckled mirthlessly and pulled a gun from his belt. Without twitching an eyelash, he shot her. I wasn't paying attention to where, all I saw was her falling to the ground and I heard her screaming.

Haylee and I screamed too and tried to run. Where? Anywhere.

I had an advantage- I was already out of the dining room and within fifty feet of the front door. I made for a mad dash just as I hear, "Tanner Mason, FBI!"

_That voice, it's...we're safe-_

* * *

><p><em>Third Person POV...<em>

The first thing Derek Morgan did when the SUV pulled up to the Aquia house was leap out and go for the front door. How he wanted to just kick the damn thing down and end the whole mess right then. Protocol tells him to do otherwise. He knocked on the door and barked, "Tanner Mason, FBI! Open up!"

Of course nobody would actually come to the door- they never do.

"Morgan, in here!" A female voice shouted back

Derek wasn't sure if it was Harper's voice or Haylee's- they've always sounded the same to him. He kicked open the door and ran in, Hotch, Prentiss, Amy and local police on his heels. The first person Morgan saw when he entered the house was Harper. The teenager's face brightened up when she saw him. She mouthed his name and he nodded to Hotch.

"Officer Louis," Hotch said to the Aquia policeman nearest him. "Get her to the paramedics."

The young officer nodded and ushered Harper out of the house while the agents and other officers kept looking.

The group split up, two officers going down one dimly lit hallway, Morgan and an officer going down another, and Hotch and Prentiss turning a corner toward the living room. Slowly, they moved in their separate directions, guns held out in front of them.

The dining room where Martina Gellar was shot in was down Hotch and Prentiss and Amy's path. Hotch saw her first and bent down to check for a pulse, silently praying that there was one. At first, he couldn't find one. He began to shake his head when Amy moved his hand aside to check for herself. She whispered to him after she kept her fingers there for a second, "It's faint. I'm not sure if she'd even make it to the hospital." Sighing, the woman ordered a medic to standby until it was clear.

With that, she and Hotch stood back up, and they and Prentiss went to keep moving. A portentous voice spoke up from in the shadows of the large room. "Better make that two medics."

The source of the voice stepped out of the shadows with fifteen year old Haylee by his side. He held her there, making it impossible for her to break free from his grasp. Taking another look at her, it was clear there was a hand holding a gun to her head- a hand that didn't belong to the man holding her. The person to whom the hand belonged to stepped out of the shadows as well. It was clear the two men were related- father and son by the looks of it.

"Put the gun down, and let the girl go." Amy said calmly, her gun still at the ready.

"Only if you take your clothes off," Smirked the man with the gun, the younger of the two.

"Do you really want to provoke three federal agents with guns pointed at you?" Prentiss chimed in.

"Seeing as my father and I still have the upper hand here...yes." He was right. As long as that gun is still pointed at Haylee's head, the Mason men were winning. The gunman slowly stroked Haylee's hair and whispered loudly enough for the agents to hear, "Such a shame I don't plan on them winning. Maybe I'll see you in Hell, honey?"

The gun that was previously pointed at Haylee's head was, was now pointed at her abdomen. A sickening crack resonated throughout the stillness of the room. The older man let go of Haylee and let her fall to the ground. Amy didn't hesitate to put a bullet through the chest of the man who shot Haylee while Hotch scrambled to handcuff the older man.

Morgan and the local police officers ome from the other areas of the house, the two younger UnSubs in cuffs themselves. Both Amy and Hotch screamed into their radios for medics for both of the teens with bullet wounds. By the time the paramedics came into the house, Martina Gellar was unconscious, but alive. She was rolled away on a gurney first.

Blood poured from Haylee's gunshot wound, soaking the shirt she'd been wearing since she was abducted and the carpet around her. She screamed in pain as she was lifted off of the floor, biting her lip to keep from shouting out how much she wished she was just_ dead_ already. _Like Lucia Gellar. _

The girl immediately decided she was a terrible person for thinking that, and that she truly deserved to die after that. So when her eyes closed involuntarily and she slipped off into darkness, she wondered if death was God's way of punishing her or a final act of his mercy.

* * *

><p>I might get the next one out tonight- depends on if my dad just goes to bed already, because he's already hinted I've been on a while...but it's MY laptop...so ha! Anyway...oh no! Is she dead? 0_0<p> 


	8. Why Everyone Hates Hospitals

**The medical information is certainly off to a certain extent. I reserched like heck, but I'm a 13 year old tenth grader, not a med student, so I'm sure it's not 100% accurate.**

**Warning: Ending is so cheesy, the cheesiness will make you want to punch a puppy.**

**Next chapter will be a paragraph or so summarizing the rest of the hospital stay, and then **readjusting at home.****

* * *

><p><strong>Why Everyone Hates Hospitals <strong>

* * *

><p><strong>The death of a child is the single most traumatic event in medicine. To lose a child is to lose a piece of yourself.<strong>  
><strong>Dr. Burton Grebin<strong>

**~.*~.*~.***

_David Rossi's POV…_

Two hours and ten minutes since the men who took my daughters were apprehended. An hour and fifty-seven minutes since the one who shot Haylee was pronounced dead. An hour and fifty-two minutes since Haylee and the other girl went into surgery to remove the bullets. An hour and a half since I'd been sitting in the waiting room of the hospital, Haylee's necklace in my hands. The silver chain with the tiny sapphire llama pendant somehow fell off her neck while she was being taken from the mall parking deck. The police had it in evidence and they'd turned it back over to me the night before. Somehow, that little silver chain was the only thing keeping me placated.

That and the knowledge Harper was alive and well. I visited with her about half an hour ago. She was asleep the whole time- which was best for her. I just sat there and held her hand and absentmindedly played with her hair until I decided that it was time to go back to waiting for news about Haylee. By the time I left Harper's hospital room, the entire team was in the waiting room. Their silence from that point on was surprisingly one of the greatest comforts a man could ask for.

The father of the Gellar sisters was sitting in his own isolated corner of the waiting room. Neither of us even look at each other, both understanding what will happen if the doctors decide one of our daughters is priority over the other. Odds were, either Haylee or Martina would be dead shortly, and we were both selfishly wishing it was our own daughter that survived. A sudden wave of guilt passed through me off and on, constantly being replaced by feelings of hope, fear and anger.

A man in surgical garb walked out from the hallway and said, "Family of Martina Gellar?"

A sinking feeling came over me as I started to think the worst. I tuned out everything the doctor said to her father- his facial expressions were tells that it was good news.

_Martina Gellar is alive._

I know I should have been happy about that, but I began to think maybe Haylee was second priority, and they'd chosen Martina's life over hers. Ridiculous, I know, but it could happen.

So I sat and waited for a while longer.

That short while longer turned into three more hours. Four...five...

The six hour and forty-six minute mark was nearing quickly. Just as the second hand passed the third tick mark between ten and eleven, a woman in surgical garb came into the room. She asked for the family of Haylee Rossi.

As if it were rehearsed, the rest of the team moved from their seats when I did. The doctor, a fairly young red haired woman, looked stunned. She composed herself and turned to me. "David Rossi," She smiled widely. "You must be her father?"

_Great. Even after my kid gets shot the surgeon recognizes me._

"Yes, I'm her father."

"Sir, do you want the short version or the whole explanation?"

I swallowed nervously. Really, I wanted to know was whether she was alive or not, but perhaps the full explanation will delay any possible bad news. "Explanation, please."

The woman nodded and said,

"Your daughter is a fighter. When you deal with high velocity penetrating wounds, he first level of trauma is the actual tearing of tissue the projectile creates. The second is the stretching and damage from the impact. The bullet entered through her abdomen and ruptured her spleen and damaged her splenic vein and artery. We removed her spleen, as it is not a vital organ- though it plays a key part in the immune system by producing white blood cells. The bullet continued to move upward at an angle and stopped shortly before reaching her heart.

The ballistic trauma caused a large amount of bloodloss. By the end of surgery, she lost over 40%.

By the time she arrived at the hospital, she was in Stage 3 of hypovolemic shock and had lost approximately 30 to 40% of her total blood volume. Stage 3 hypovolemic shock is characterized by marked tachycardia, which is a heart rate that exceeds normal; and tachypnea, which is rapid breathing. Haylee's heart beats per minute and breaths per minute were greater than 120 and 30 respectively. Her systolic blood pressure dropped dangerously and her systolic pressure was decreasing rapidly.

By the time surgery began, she was in Stage 4 of hypovolemic shock. Stage 4 characteristics are blood loss was greater than 40%, at least 2000 mL lost; tachycardia greater than 140 beats per minute with a decreased pulse; and nearly non-existent capillary refill. A blood transfusion began immediately while we operated, and she was given O- negative blood, which is the universal donor blood type.

Her heart stopped twice on the table, and we were able to resuscitate her both times. She still hasn't recovered from the anesthesia, but she should be awake by tomorrow morning. As her father, you may see her, but please understand she's come out of major surgery."

The surgeon pauses and adds, "Agent Rossi, your daughter is lucky to be alive."

I just stood there for a while longer in shock. "So she's...she's alive?"

The redhead grinned, "She is. Would you like to know the room number?"

"Please."

"401, sir."

_Right across from Harper. _

She turned and left, and Hotch smiled at me as he stood up and walked over to me. He grabbed me by the shoulders and said, "Well? Go see her. Do you want us to wait?"

I smiled and said no. "Thank you, though."

Haylee's hospital room was just a short distance down the hall. Slowly, I opened the door and closed it gently.

In books and movies, people in hospitals are always described as peaceful and beautiful- almost as if they are asleep and dreaming of some happy, far away world. As wonderful as the poetry of that sounds, such descriptions are false, like fairy tales with happy endings. Haylee didn't look peaceful or asleep like in books and movies. She didn't even look like Haylee. More like a sickly replica of herself. She was paler than the sheet over her body, and looked more like Frankenstein than a beautiful teenage girl with all of the IV needles and oxygen tube attached to her. The only trace of my funny, intelligent, independent daughter left was the piece of her hair she had dyed turquoise. It laid there in messy strands like the rest of her dyed-black hair.

I wanted to just open my eyes and see that it was all a bad dream, that the girls were never kidnapped and everything would be the way it was. Not that our lives were exactly _normal _from the start or anything.

"A little bit dysfunctional, right kiddo?" I said to her as she laid there, unresponsive.

I leaned over and kissed her cheek and slipped the necklace around her neck. It took a while for me to figure out how to clasp it, but eventually I did and I adjusted the llama to be where it should be. Her obsession with llamas is more confusing than her obsession with foreign music, but it is one of the things that makes her Haylee; just like Harper's obsession with celebrities makes her Harper.

I'm out of words to say as I stayed by my older daughter's side, so I just brushed her hair with my fingers to bring some order back to it.

"I'm so sorry," I whispered as I made sure to avoid touching any of the medical wires and needles. "I love you, _cara mia_."

The clock on the wall read ten o' clock too soon. I kissed her forehead and squeezed her hand before standing up to leave. "Wake up soon, kiddo. See you tomorrow." As I was leaving the hospital, I peeked into Harper's room across the hall to find she was still asleep. Still. I tiptoed into the room to say goodnight to her as well. Not doing so just didn't feel right.

**~.*~.*~.***

On the short ten minute drive home, all of the emotions I'd been feeling the past week came back to me in a flash. I had been so angry I could kill, so stressed I'd dropkick a puppy over a fence, and so worried that I actually rearranged all of the books on my bookshelf in alphabetical order by author.

It wasn't until I got to to house that I collapsed on the couch and sobbed into my hands.

**~.*~.*~.***

_Harper's POV..._

I woke up at about eight o' clock the next morning in a hospital room. Normally, I'd freak out. I've always hated hospitals, but now that I knew I was safe, there wasn't much of a reason to hate this place. I'd rather be in a sterile hospital than in a dirty basement waiting for men in thier thirties to stop raping my sister.

"My sister!" I exclaimed, leaping out of my hospital bed. I didn't know where she was exactly, but I was sure she was at the hospital too. I completely ignored the fact I was in a hospital gown as I walked down the hall.

"Harper!" A voice exclaimed.

My eyes lit up as I recognized who it belonged to. "Dad!" I turned around and threw my arms around my father.

He hugged me back and held me for a short while. "Harper..."

"Is Haylee okay?" I asked while he still held me in an embrace.

Slowly, he pulled away. "Harper-"

"Don't 'Harper' me. Not now. Is Haylee okay? I heard a gunshot before the ambulance left and brought me here last night. I thought the UnSub got shot. But was it Haylee? Was it my sister?" I was now shouting at him, making hospital personnel stare at us.

"Harper, _tesoro_, listen. Haylee is okay. Yes. She was shot, I won't lie to you about that. But she is alright. She's in a medically induced coma which is best for her right now."

I bit my lip before asking, "Can I see her?"

"No." He said with such finality it stunned me.

"Why not? She's my sister!"

Dad crouched lower to where I felt taller than him and he held my hands in his. "Kiddo, you've been through a trauma. I don't think seeing your sister in the state she is now will help you. It's in your best interests, Harper."

I scowled at him and spat, "What do you know? You can't possibly understand the bond I have with her. You have to let me see her!"

Despite my attitude, he kept calm as he continued to speak to me. "Harper, listen. I love you, but I don't think you need to see Haylee right now. Maybe tomorrow, sweetheart."

"Why?" I pressed.

"It's...in your best interests," he repeated.

_That's it. _I snapped-

"What do you know about my best interests? About me in general? I've known Haylee my whole life, and you didn't even know I existed until this past May! What kind of father doesn't even know that his daughters exist, huh? Holy hell, even our mother knows more about us than you do. I can't believe you're standing here trying to tell me what I can or cannot do because it's, 'best for me' when you don't even _know _me! I hate you! I hate everyone but especially _**you**_!"

-and regretted it.

I could tell from his face that he was hurt, but the thing is..._I don't care. _I shoved him aside with such force, he hit the wall. He was already standing back up by the time I figured out where I could run to. The first place that came to mind was the room across the hall from mine. So, I ran to the door and pushed it open. The person lying on the bed looked so unlike the name on the medical chart.

_Rossi, Haylee._

Needles...everywhere. A bag of blood hanging from an IV pole. An oxygen tube. A machine to monitor her heart rate. A pale, ghostly clone of my sister.

"He-he was right," I stuttered. I turned to leave and tried to run out, but I slammed into someone who didn't even stumble.

Without even looking up to see who it was, I cried hysterically and pulled them into a hug, burying my face into their chest so I could muffle the sounds of my crying. The person rubbed my back in soft, gentle circles with one arm and pulled me closer to them with the other. "Sh, it'll be alright, _tesoro_."

My eyes widened at the voice. _There's only one person that calls me tesoro. Why would he want to speak to me after what I said? _

He continued patting my back and trying to console me, occasionally mumbling something in Italian then translating it to English. "Andrà tutto bene. It'll be okay, Harper," "Respira, bambina. Breathe, baby girl."

I sniffled a little more into his shirt before looking up at him. "Daddy why would you-? Aren't you angry? Upset? Don't you hate me for what I said?"

"I don't hate you. You're emotional, you've been through a trauma...I'm just going to let that one slide as you not being yourself."

I cried harder. "But you should! You've been nothing but nice to Haylee and me and I;ve been horrible to you! Lashing out in the hallway like that? That's not right, and...and oh! Now I'm being a blubbering idiot and going on about myself while Haylee's the one you need to worry about and-"

"Harper Brielle Rossi, stop it." Dad said sternly. "You have every right to cry as much as you want."

"N-no I don't! Daddy you don't understand! She had it worse than me! She had it worse!" I began to throw punches at the air, and I was sure I accidentally punched my father in the face a few times.

Nurses came into the room and Daddy nodded to them. One of them had a syringe with something in it and she injected it into my arm. I read enough to know it must have been some kind of sedative or barbiturate. Whatever it was, the needle hurt. Daddy gave my hand one more squeeze before handing me over to the nurses.

_Great, so now they think I'm some emotionally unstable lunatic,_ is the last thing I can remember thinking before it all went black.

****~.*~.*~.*****

_Third Person POV..._

Dave hated hospitals. He always hated them, and the knowledge that he would be spending a great deal of time at one in the near future was less than pleasant. As the nurses led a sedated Harper away, he couldn't help but think back to what she said earlier:

_What do you know about my best interests? About me in general?...What kind of father doesn't even know that his daughters exist?... I can't believe you're standing here trying to tell me what I can or cannot do...I hate everyone but especially **you**!_

_I hate you..._

_I hate you..._

A quiet whisper and the sound of the hospital bed creaking pulled him from his thoughts. "Llama?"

Dave looked over and saw Haylee with her hand over her llama necklace, confused as to how it got there. "You thought you lost it at the parking deck, huh?"

Her tired eyes brightened up when she saw her father. "Daddy? Where...where am I?"

"The hospital, _cara mia,_" Dave said, twirling her turquoise streak around his finger.

Haylee's hand trailed down her abdomen, where the many evidences of surgery were fresh. "I'm going to have scars, aren't I?"

The agent squeezed his daughter's hand and said nothing. He just watched her as she took in everything.

"I was awake earlier, you know. I told Scarlett not to bother you if I didn't stay away for a few hours...which I didn't. I was out in ten minutes."

"Who's Scarlett?"

Haylee giggled weakly and shook her head. "Sorry. Dr. Scarlett Maxwell. She's my doctor, but she goes to church with me. Her husband is my youth pastor."

"Gotcha," he said, nodding. "How are you feeling?"

"Considering I was just shot?"

****~.*~.*~.*****

_Haylee's POV..._

"How are you feeling?" Dad asked.

"Considering I just got shot?" I laughed with sarcasm through my weak laughter. "Pretty good."

"Good." He moved my hair from my eyes and kissed my forehead.

"You know you don't have to keep messing with my hair like I'm a puppy, right?" I joked.

Daddy laughed, glad that my sense of humor is in tact.

_Unlike something else of mine..._

He'd find out about the rape sooner or later. But not now. I wasn't about to ruin the moment for him, so I let him go on about how worried he was when I was in surgery for about five hours. I asked him a few questions about what exactly happened in surgery and he said something about them removing my spleen and them removing the bullet from near my heart.

"Wait, wait, wait. What the heck is a spleen?"

"Honestly?" He chuckled. "I have no idea."

"Is Martina okay?"

"She was alive last night. She came out of surgery about three and a half hours before you did."

"Good," I said, yawning. I closed my eyes for a moment or two before they popped back open. "Harper?"

"Sedated in the room across the hall?"

"Why?" I asked weakly.

"I'll explain later, kiddo. You need to go back to sleep." He stood up to leave, and I tugged on his arm so hard he sat back down.

****~.*~.*~.*****

_David Rossi's POV..._

Haylee's questions- while a good sign- shouldn't be answered right now. Still a little unstable, it's best to be delicate. When I tried to leave so she could try and sleep some more, she pulled on my arm to make me stay seated.

"Stay? In case they come back?" She whispered helplessly.

"In case who comes back, _cara_?"

"_Them. _Especially the man with the cigarette." She hid her face under the blanket so that only her eyes were showing.

"They're not coming back, kiddo. They won't hurt you again." I assured her.

She shook her head at me from under the blankets and hissed, "The nightmares." She shivered and slowly pulled the blankets down from her face. "Please stay?"

The fear in her eyes was like nothing I'd seen in her before. Not even when she had to be the spokesperson for her mother, sister and herself that day in May has she been afraid. She was polite, orderly, and businesslike. But now- after being subjected to God knows what- her fearlessness and confidence was worn down to nothing.

"Please, Daddy?" She repeated.

"Alright, sweetheart. If I fall sleep here it's your fault."

She smiled. "Terrible person I am. Denying you your coffee."

I laughed and she smiled as she pulled the blankets back over her face. Her hand peeked out from under the side of the blankets and rested there until I gently grabbed it and moved it back to her side. She was still awake, but didn't say anything. Half an hour passed, and I was sure she was asleep. Figuring it was a good time to check on Harper, I stood up to go across the hall.

"Dad?" Haylee whispered from under her cocoon.

I paused at the door and turned around without saying anything.

"I love you."

"I love you too, kiddo."

********~.*~.*~.*********

**Certain is it that there is no kind of affection so purely angelic as of a father to a daughter. In love to our wives there is desire; to our sons, ambition; but to our daughters there is something which there are no words to express. **

**~Joseph Addison**


	9. First Day Of Normalcy

**First Day of Normalcy**

* * *

><p><strong>~.*~.*~.*<strong>

_Four days later..._

_David Rossi's POV..._

It had been nearly five days since the girls were found, and things were slowly starting to return to normal. Whatever _that _meant. The doctors let Harper leave the hospital two days ago, and Haylee the next day. I was a little worried that it would be as awkward as it was when I first met them, not knowing what to say, what to do- but it wasn't. It felt like they'd been gone much much longer than a week and it seemed like it felt that way for them, too.

Despite them being back, there was still one big problem with everything. Danielle was still in Virginia and still planning to make me agree to some custody plan that her lawyers work out...like _that's_ going to happen, though. Still. I hadn't told the girls she was in the state, much less Stafford County. There was really no use giving them something else to stress about and be upset over, anyway.

What really surprised me is that the first thing they wanted to do was go back to school. I suppose it's because it was something safe and routine...but what teenage girl _likes _school?

"Haylee, are you sure you don't want to wait another day?" I asked her, standing in the open doorway.

She rolled her eyes for the tenth time that morning and put the cap back on her eyeliner. "Daddy, I'll be fine. It's not like it's anything crazy it's school. Besides, I need some sense of normalcy, don't I?"

"I'm just worried it's too soon, that's all."

Haylee half-smiled and said, "I've already missed over a week of school. It'll be a miracle if I don't have to repeat the tenth grade as it stands now. I have so much gossip and schoolwork to catch up on and I can't stand to miss anymore."

I chuckled, "Gossip? I thought Harper was the gossiper."

"She is. I just like hearing it so I know what's going on. Dear goodness, I never _spread_ it." She zipped up her makeup bag and slipped it into her purse. She caught me eyeing it and rolled her eyes again. "If you tell me I don't need makeup I'm going to punch you."

I held up my hand in the universal 'whoa Nelly!' gesture and lied that I wasn't going to. Harper smiled and said, "How can you possibly catch up with all of your AP classes?"

"Vitya's going to give me all of his chemistry and calculus notes and help me make up the homework assignments, so he'll be shadowing me all week. Bianca and Lindzi have everything for Spanish, so I'm going to borrow it all over the weekend."

_Why him? Why not the gay guy? At least Nathan will in no way be sexually attracted to her! _I didn't voice my opinion, though. Honestly at this point, the girls could be getting help from the voices in their heads and I'd be fine with it. "That's good,"

"We're going to be late, c'mon, Hayl," said Harper. She grabbed Haylee's hand and pulled her toward the door.

**~.*~.*~.***

_Harper's POV..._

I knew going back to school would be weird. I knew people would whisper and ask questions. I could live with that, but it's the _staring _that got on my nerves. Take a flipping picture, it lasts longer, geez.

Posters for the winter dance were taped rather sloppily all over the walls, and reminders for glee club performances were taped over most of the lockers. I scowled and tore the hot pink paper off of mine, balled it up, and threw it in the trash. I hated the stupid glee club. Always so happy and singy-and-dancy and...gleeful.

Plus, they're all a bunch of jerks, especially Courtney Tyson. The only people I hated more than Courtney at the moment were my sister and father. I didn't want to go to school, but Daddy's rule was if one goes back, the other must, too. Damn her. Damn him.

Kind of made me miss my mom a bit. Sure she was the bitch who left us with a man who could possibly be an ax murder, but at least _she _wouldn't have made me go. If Haylee wanted to stress herself after getting shot, she'd make her do it alone. I sighed and tore one of the winter dance flyers off the locket next to mine.

I jumped when I heard a chuckle behind me. "You're a cheerleader, Rossi. Don't your type thrive off of school dances?"

"What do you want, you perv?" I snapped at bra-snatching Austin Greer.

"Nothing other than the satisfaction of pissing you off." He smirked.

"Greer, I've been through a trauma and you're seriously going to start this crap again?"

"Yep," He said. "So. Harper. Now that you're all off balance mentally, do you think you'll sleep with me anytime soon?" Greer slowly moved his hand down my back and he grabbed my butt.

At that, I punched him in the face, making his head slam into the lockers. "Grow the fu-"

"Ms. Rossi! To The. Office!" Shouted the voice of Mr. Cowell, one of the assistant principals.

"But he deserved it!" I argued.

"Ms. Rossi, I don't want to hear it. Office. Now."

"Yes sir, Mr. Cowell."

**~.*~.*~.***

_Haylee's POV..._

I sat in the back row of my calculus class, staring at the top of the desk. My eyes unmoving, unlike my thumbs, which were having a war with each other. The classroom filled up quickly, and as soon as my classmates saw that I was there, the whispers commenced. Not that I expected differently, I just wished they wouldn't do it. I caught some of the things they said. Basically, everything was along the same lines:

"I was hoping she wouldn't get killed...I copy off of her in history,"

"I heard that she got shot,"

"I wonder if she has scars- should we ask if we can see?"

"Nah, man. That's rude."

"She won't care!"

"Isn't her dad an FBI agent?"

"I think I've read her dad's books- if he knows so much about crime, why did she and Harper get kidnapped?"

"Think she'll mind if we ask her about being kidnapped?"

"Sh! Haylee might overhear you,"

I slowly pulled my hoodie over my head and zipped it closed. Once zipped, I pulled the hood down over my face as far as it'd go- halfway covering my eyes. Thank God for my long hair that covered the rest of my face. I wanted to disappear; or at least shrink a foot or two. Eventually, I tuned out the whispers by focusing on the ticking clock.

_Tick, tock, tick tock..._

The whispers became unintelligible murmurs.

_Tick tock, tick tock..._

I wondered if Bianca or Vitya would be in class that day. That was really one of the main reasons I came back so early- too see my friends.

_Tick tock, tick tock, tick tock, tick._

My teacher didn't even get there until ten minutes 'til class.

_Tick, tock. Tick-_

"Haylee!" Squealed the voice of Bianca Avellis, my taller and more Italian than me friend.

"O bozhe moĭ! Haylee is back," Vitya exclaimed half in his language, half in mine.

Both of my friends dropped their calculus books on the floor and nearly tackled me in a hug. "Oh, careful careful!" I reminded them, gesturing to my side.

"Right, you were, um...what is the word? Something with the bullet?"

"Shot," Bianca and I said in unison.

"Did it hurt?" A random girl asked.

"No. It felt amazing and I hope I get shot again what do you _think_?" I snapped.

She bit her lip and whispered something to the boy next to her. I wanted to shout at them, but getting angry never solved anything; so instead, I broke my pencil in half.

Mr. Williams called the class to order, and they had to take their seats. He cleared his throat and gave a ten minute talk about how 'we need to respect Haylee's personal space and allow her time to heal mentally and emotionally.' He encouraged note-sharing and stressed that it was very important for everyone to lend me a helping hand. This earned stares, groans, and snickers from my classmates.

My face went red and I started to shift uncomfortably until I felt a hand touch mine. I looked to my left and saw it was Vitya; which, really,made me blush more.

**~.*~.*~.***

_Third person POV..._

Aaron Hotchner tapped on the open door of his colleague's office as he let himself in. He saw his friend and mentor sigh as he closed his phone. The unit chief couldn't help but to be curious. "Penny for your thoughts?"

Dave shook his head and sighed again. "I got a call from the high school. Harper apparently got in a fight with a boy and she got physical and very verbal."

Hotch raised his eyebrows. "His name?"

"Austin...something."

"Greer?"

"How did you know?"

"She talks about him all the time. He's the pervert who keeps making suggestive comments to her."

The Italian bit his lip. "She never mentioned any of that to me."

"Probably because she knows you'd kill him."

"Damn right,"

Hotch chuckled, then became serious again. "How are you holding up, Dave?"

Aaron knew what it was like to be a parent. He understood how important father-son bonds are. He couldn't imagine what parenting was like for his friend. Missing out of the the first fifteen years or so surely has taken its toll, and being a single father to two teenage girls was surely not an easy task. Though Hotch was positive he'd never have a daughter, he had a sister. From watching his sister and father as he grew up, he learned how father-daughter dynamics worked. Listen when they rant, remind them that they're beautiful, give hugs, buy stuff; at least, that was how Mr. Hotchner always treated Bethany.

From what he noticed by observing the Rossi clan, Dave's twins were treated with the same love and adoration Beth Hotchner was- if not more. Aaron could tell Dave was trying his best to make up for lost time in any way he could, even if the girls didn't see it. On a slow day at work, Hotch would see him flipping through an old photo album that belonged to the girls. The albums were full of pictures of them growing up, school festivals, church district functions- a photo biography of their lives. Anything to make their father feel like more of a father.

The usually calm and level-headed agent knew what it was like when his son was out of his sight. Like when he and Jack were at Walmart the other day and he turned his back and he was gone. Luckily, Jack was only in the next aisle, looking at the Spiderman toys. He couldn't even bring himself to imagine being in Rossi's position. Both children abducted within two hours of each other, one from their own home, and nothing but photographs of slain teenagers just like his own to foreshadow their future. The fact that he watched the abduction tapes the UnSubs sent the police, just hoping to see something that would help his daughters was more than even _he _could have done- had Jack been taken.

"Dave?" Hotch pressed the senior agent.

He hesitated. "Alright, I guess."

"No. No 'alright I guess.' Seriously, how are you doing?"

"Unless you want a rant, I suggest you just take my previous answer, Aaron."

"Dave, I'm a profiler."

Rossi knew he was loosing, so he gave Hotch the long answer he was fishing for:

"Honestly? I've been better. Everything would be perfect if this hadn't happened, so on one hand, I'm hating it. On the other hand, I know that the outcome could have easily been a hundred times worse. They're alive, and home, and already getting back to a normal schedule; which is great, but now I'm worried about the long-term effects and the mental scars. There's no way the first day back can go smoothly- as that phone call just proved. Then there's the fact that I don't even know exactly what happened to them. I don't know what those bastards did to them. God. If they touched them, Aaron...

I'd probably do something to get myself arrested, just so I could go to prison and kill them myself.

Then there's their trial coming up. Surely Haylee and Harper will be asked to give testimony against them and I don't want to make them relive it. They already wake up screaming every night and I can do nothing but _watch _and just _try _to comfort them but it's useless. I feel terrible for not being able to just fix it. On top of that, I'm biting my nails just waiting for Danielle or her lawyers to call about the custody dispute she plans on starting. I', sure if I hire a good enough lawyer I could win the custody battle without even having to take the case to court but...Aaron, she's relentless."

Dave sighed and briefly face-desked. "If only life had an easy button like in those Staples commercials."

Hotch nodded in agreement before smiling and saying, "I think I know what will cheer all three of you up."

"Does it have something to do with Morgan and or Garcia?"

"Maybe." Hotch said mysteriously.

"Shoot."

"They want to have a welcome home party Friday and they're not taking no for an answer. That's actually the reason I came to talk to you. Said you'd agree if you heard it for me."

"Are you sure that's a good idea?" Dave asked cautiously.

"Dave. Six FBI agents with guns. Count Agent Sweetwater who I'm sure will be there, and that makes seven."

"Good point."

"And Dave?"

"Hm?"

"Don't stress too much. You're a good father. The twins are your favorite people in the world and that's obvious. Any argument what's-her-name has is invalid." Hotch winked and left the senior agent's office.

* * *

><p>sorrrrrry it was late and kinda suckish...<p>

I promise! Updates will be faster now. So, any feedback is greatly appreciated, just no flames. I do ConCrit though. I LOVE ConCrit.

Anything in particular you'd like to see next chapter?

Today's my birthday! :) 14! :)


	10. Excpect The Unexpected

**Excpect The Unexpected**

* * *

><p><strong>~.*~.*~.*<strong>

_Third person POV..._

Dave sat alone in his home office that Thursday afternoon, taking Hotch's instructions to "take it easy today."

The senior agent appreciated Aaron's consideration, but he much preferred the sounds of ringing phones, beeping photocopiers, and even the sound of Strauss hounding him to the dead silence of his house. He didn't like the way the silence felt- eerie, lonely. Granted, it _did _give him time to work on his next book and go through some old case files...but still. David Rossi had been a sociable person since he was very young, so the isolation wasn't exactly pleasant.

Sprawled out on the desk in front of him, were bits and pieces of paperwork, Harper's last biology test, one of Haylee's short stories that he'd finally convinced her to let him read, some case files, and the invitation to the family reunion his brother told him about months before. He grimaced as he looked at the envelope. His address was written in the center in Katherine's cursive, and the address of Katherine and Patrizio Zaccaro was printed neatly on a sticker in the corner. The envelope was open, the handwritten invitation poking out of the top. Dave remember how growing up, his sister was seen as the favorite of his siblings. Kathy Rossi was funny, intelligent, kind-hearted, creative, artistic, obedient, and was always the first to help out. Rarely did Dave recall Kathy being reprimanded. The only thing stopping him from calling his sister and telling her he won't be at the reunion is the fact that he had no real issues with his older sister. That and the fact that she wrote him a really heartfelt plea for him to "please please be there."

He sighed and shoved the invitation under a stack of papers.

_Ding dong..._

"Nobody I know uses the doorbell," he mused to himself. He got up to get the door, and without bothering to look through the peephole, opened the door.

"Surprise!" The younger woman on the other end exclaimed as cheerily as possible.

The agent's eyes widened in shock. "Julie?"

"In the flesh," She giggled.

Dave stared at the green-eyed, red, curly haired woman in disbelief. "How did you even get my address?"

The woman smiled and gave him a hug. "Does it matter, big brother?"

"I don't suppose so. It's not like you're a serial killer or- ow! What was that for?"

**~.*~.*~.***

_David Rossi's POV..._

I returned my sister's hug and said, "I don't suppose so. It's not like you're a serial killer or-" She pulled away and punched my chest as hard as she could. "-ow! What was that for?"

"For not hearing from you for four years and for not telling me you had kids! Since _when _did that happen? _Which of your damned ex-wives _is the fu-"

"Language, Julia,"

"-reaking mother!"

I patted Julie's hand and told her to calmly sit down. She peered around the corner and found the couch. "Gasp! David, this couch is _of God_."

"Coffee?" I offered, attempting to delay the conversation about to ensue.

"No thanks," Julie said. "I'd rather skip right to the yelling and screaming."

"Or, just throwing this out there, we could be adults and I could answer your questions calmly and honestly."

She rolled her eyes. "Fine...I was looking forward to fighting, though."

"You have got to be the most immature thirty-something year old I've met."

"And _you_, David, are the most bothersome fifty-something year old I've met. But you're my brother and I still love you." She paused and opened up one of the photo albums I had on an end table. "Which one's their mom? Cute Caroline? Jittery Jennie? Draconian Danielle? Oh gawd, David. Please don't tell me it was Jitters. She was sweet and all, but she was nuts."

"Did you come up with nicknames for all three of my exes..._seriously_?"

"Yes, seriously. Now spill. Caroline, Jitters, or The Wicked Bitch of the West?"

"Um, the third o-"

"Dammit David! Poor kids." She continued to flip through the photo album as she said, "They're what, fourteen, sixteen? How come I haven't met them yet?"

"Fifteen. Didn't know they existed until May."

"How come?"

"Long story, Jules," I sighed.

"You don't have to tell me that one, big brother." She stood up and walked to the fridge and grabbed one of Harper's cupcakes. "What's with all this gluten-free shiz?"

"My daughter has Celiac's disease. I'd rather spend a little extra money and eat food with a slightly different texture than deal with sick Harper."

"That's a boy's name. Does Danielle know any girl names?"

"Her twin is Haylee."

"Oh...so what's the custody sitch? How long do you get them for?"

"As of now? I'm the sole caregiver. But the wicked witch of the west is trying to start a custody dispute. I'm expecting a call from her or something from the lawyers any day now."

Julie nodded. "Custody can be tricky. Believe me."

I screwed up my face in confusion. "Jules, aren't you and Ettore still married?"

Julie scoffed. "No. He left me for some twenty-five year old hoe. I hope he has STDs now."

"How long ago was that?"

"About four years ago."

"I'm sorry."

"Don't be. I remarried- Matthieu is French."

I shook my head at my sister. "You're just like my oldest."

"Really?"

"She's a magnet for foreign men. The Russian exchange student is practically glued to her side, and there's an older British boy who's been eyeing her. I don't like it."

Julie just smiled and went back to the kitchen. She had to have changed her mind about the coffee, since the coffee machine was running.

"You drive all this way from Nebraska?"

"Oregon. Moved after I got remarried."

"Same difference. Did you drive all this way just to ask me five questions and punch me?"

She paused before making the same 'pretty pretty please' face my daughters made and said, "_Actually..._I was hoping to maybe meet them before I went back to Oregon?"

I thought about it for a moment. With all of the craziness that's gone on these past six months or so, maybe it would be a good thing to slowly fit the girls into the extended family. Starting with Julia, my favorite sister, then maybe sometime before the family reunion they could meet Andrew and his family, and Julie's husband. Although, returning to normalcy was the goal for now, and random relatives weren't part of the normal routine.

_But it's just Julie, not an ax-murderer._

"Okay."

"Okay...? What?" She pressed hopefully.

"You can meet them. You can stay as long as you feel like it."

Julie dropped her jaw and teased, "You mean I get to explore my big brother's _mansion_? You must love me, David."

"Don't make me regret it."

**~.*~.*~.***

_Danielle's POV..._

I sat in the office of the child custody attorney recommended by my lawyer in California. Mr. Yakov Belova, a Harvard graduate and classmate of some of the top lawyers in California, sat across from me in the brightly lit office.

"Mrs. Smith," asked Yakov slowly, "Are you wanting to take this case to court right away, or try to settle this in mediation?"

"I'd prefer mediation. Let's not make a bigger deal out of this than we need to."

The younger attorney smiled and jotted down something on a piece of paper. "Wise choice, Mrs. Smith. And if it fails?"

"Take it to court."

"Mm hm,"

"What experience do you have with mediation?"

"That's how I typically handle my child custody cases. I've handled several difficult cases in mediation- cases that make this one seem lovely."

I chuckled at his comment and asked him cautiously, "And your clients? What is the typical outcome; do they usually get primary custody?"

Yakov paused and pursed his lips. He adjusted his brown-rimmed glasses over his thoughtful gray eyes. "Typically, Mrs. Smith, they are happy with the amount of time they are allotted to see their children."

I shook my hand and impatiently drummed my fingers on the mahogany desk. "Yakov, I don't want just mother's days, a month in the summer and holidays on odd-numbered years. I want sole legal and physical custody."

It was Yakov's turn to shake his head. "You won't get that outcome in mediation. There's no way even _your _ex-husband would agree to that. No matter how...I'm sorry. You said he was abusive?"

I paused, not sure if I should continue with my lie. I wouldn't deny that David Rossi was the bane of my existence, but he was a good man and I'm sure a wonderful father to my children. There was no way I could stand to see him keep the girls, but did I really want to slander him? Was this little custody case worth possibly his ruining his reputation?

Yakov's patient voice interrupted my inner thoughts. "Mrs. Smith? You said your ex was abusive?"

"Not necessarily. In a sense he is."

"Can you clarify, ma'am?"

"He's distant and cold. Sometimes Dave will belittle them. He's over-controlling, has too many restrictions on them. They haven't contacted me in six months because he won't let them. It's borderline emotional and mental abuse."

Yakov clicked his pen shut and stared at his jottings. "Mm hm. Do you know if he has spoken to his attorney, yet?"

"He has not to my knowledge."

"Make sure you two are on the same page as far as a mediation meeting date goes. Might I suggest waiting until after the holidays?"

I took a minute to think about about his suggestion. Yakov was right- there was no point in bringing up the issue this close to Christmas. As much as I hated to admit it, I knew that I couldn't ruin Dave's first- and hopefully only- Christmas with them. It just wouldn't be right; and, if there was anything that I owed him to make up for the past fifteen years, it was that.

"Sure, Yakov. I can wait that long.

**~.*~.*~.***

_Harper's POV..._

I ran my index finger along the cool, metal object in my right hand. I pressed it to my skin and immediately pulled it away. It was cold, I liked that. But it was sharp, very sharp.

How I even acquired the razor blade in the first place? I don't know. Could I do what it was intended for? I don't know.

The blade still clutched in my right hand, I leaned my head back against the red partition in the bathroom stall. _How did I get here? _I asked myself. For the past few years, I'd felt alienated, like I was an outsider. Even among my friends I still felt a little too different. I went through a short bout of depression when I was in the eighth grade, but it never got to the point of self-harm or suicidal thoughts.

Was it the stress of the these past six months in Virginia that triggered this? Or did I have it in me all along?

Lifting my head off the partition, I brought the blade back to my arm. Slowly, I added pressure a little at a time.

"No, no, no, no," I whispered to myself, trying to force myself to stop.

_Daddy would be so disappointed if I did it..._

"But I _have to_."

Just as quickly as I'd confirmed my decision, I changed my mind. I slammed my head back against the partition and dropped the blade on the bathroom floor. "Not now. Not at school. Not when anybody can catch me."

With that, I picked up the blade, thew it in my backpack, and left the girl's bathroom.


	11. AN Rewrite

Hey!

I hate A/Ns I really do. But, this one's semi-important.

I was reading through Rossi's Girls yesterday and I was like, **wow! Major typos, errors, plot errors- **_blah. Just blah._ Then I looked at this fic and was like, **okay, a little less blah. **

I wrote Rossi's Girls when I was like...12 (yes, yes I know, on FF a year before I should. SUCH a rebel.) I know I can write better than that and I feel my writing has improved.

I've decided that revising it won't be enough to fix it. Really, it just won't. So, what I'm going to do, is completely rewrite it. Maybe break it down into more fics, maybe not. I just kind of feel like I owe it to myself to actually sit down now that I'm 2 years older and write a _good _fic. Delve into the characters more, just do...something, you know?

So, after I come up with a decent title- for which I am drawing a complete blank- I'll get to it. Most likely tonight. The first chapter will be very much the same as the original fic. I'm keeping the original up as my basic guideline until the re-write is finished, then I'm going to delete it. Then I am going to rewrite this. For this fic, I _might _be able to just revise the chapters since they're not all that bad. Either way, I'm keeping this one up until I finish the Rossi's Girls rewrite and then decide what to do from there.

I'm also going to try and find a beta for the rewrite, but I've sent a few nice and polite beta request PMs in the past and nobody ever replies. I mean, I have a beta for one of my Hunger Games fanfics, but he actually offered. Maybe sending nice PMs _isn't _the way to do it.

Ah, well.

*Wracks brain for title ideas*

-McKala


End file.
